20,500 Shares in National Fuel Gas Company $NFG Bought by Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI

Key Points

• Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI has acquired a new position in National Fuel Gas Company, purchasing 20,500 shares valued at approximately $1.623 million during Q1.
• National Fuel Gas reported a quarterly earnings per share of $1.64, exceeding expectations and marking a 27.4% revenue increase year-over-year.
• The company recently increased its quarterly dividend to $0.535 per share, reflecting a positive change from the previous dividend and a yield of 2.5%.

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 20,500 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $1,623,000.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NFG. Assetmark Inc. grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 9,475.0% during the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 383 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 379 shares in the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 316.7% during the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 400 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 304 shares in the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the 1st quarter valued at $40,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.96% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NFG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America raised National Fuel Gas from an "underperform" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $85.00 to $107.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded National Fuel Gas from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, August 10th. Zacks Research downgraded National Fuel Gas from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 18th. Finally, Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of National Fuel Gas in a report on Wednesday, August 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $96.67.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NFG traded up $0.17 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $88.20. 368,859 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 489,658. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.46 and a quick ratio of 0.39. National Fuel Gas Company has a twelve month low of $58.82 and a twelve month high of $89.82. The company has a market cap of $7.97 billion, a PE ratio of 33.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.61. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $86.72 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.08.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.50 by $0.14. National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 20.81% and a net margin of 11.15%.The company had revenue of $531.83 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $596.12 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.99 EPS. National Fuel Gas's revenue for the quarter was up 27.4% on a year-over-year basis. National Fuel Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.000-8.500 EPS. FY 2025 guidance at 6.800-6.950 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that National Fuel Gas Company will post 6.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.535 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 30th. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. National Fuel Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 80.45%.

National Fuel Gas Company Profile

National Fuel Gas Company operates as a diversified energy company. It operates through four segments: Exploration and Production, Pipeline and Storage, Gathering, and Utility. The Exploration and Production segment explores for, develops, and produces natural gas and oil. The Pipeline and Storage segment provides interstate natural gas transportation services through an integrated gas pipeline system in Pennsylvania and New York; and owns and operates underground natural gas storage fields.