Gabelli Funds LLC Purchases 8,000 Shares of Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN)

Gabelli Funds LLC increased its holdings in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN - Free Report) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 520,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 8,000 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC owned 1.30% of Northwest Natural worth $20,571,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NWN. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Northwest Natural during the fourth quarter valued at about $496,000. Guggenheim Capital LLC increased its stake in Northwest Natural by 136.2% in the 4th quarter. Guggenheim Capital LLC now owns 12,572 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $497,000 after acquiring an additional 7,250 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 74,863 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,962,000 after acquiring an additional 11,160 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Northwest Natural during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,151,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Northwest Natural in the fourth quarter valued at $252,000. 75.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Northwest Natural

In other Northwest Natural news, VP David A. Weber sold 2,183 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.46, for a total transaction of $92,690.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 255 shares in the company, valued at $10,827.30. The trade was a 89.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO David Hugo Anderson sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.97, for a total value of $307,275.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 130,242 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,336,014.74. The trade was a 5.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 25,192 shares of company stock worth $1,042,268. 0.84% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Northwest Natural Price Performance

Northwest Natural stock traded up $0.02 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $43.01. 34,194 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 237,250. Northwest Natural Holding has a 12-month low of $34.82 and a 12-month high of $44.25. The company has a market cap of $1.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.29 and a beta of 0.56. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $41.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $40.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.42 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $370.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $395.05 million. Northwest Natural had a return on equity of 5.89% and a net margin of 6.90%. The company's revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.21 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Northwest Natural Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.56%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. Northwest Natural's dividend payout ratio is currently 96.55%.

Northwest Natural Profile

Northwest Natural Holding Company, through its subsidiary, Northwest Natural Gas Company, provides regulated natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the United States. The company operates a mist gas storage facility contracted to other utilities, third-party marketers, and electric generators; offers natural gas asset management services; and operates an appliance retail center.