Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS) Stock Passes Above 200 Day Moving Average - Time to Sell?

Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:NGS - Get Free Report)'s share price passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Monday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of $24.03 and traded as high as $25.44. Natural Gas Services Group shares last traded at $24.59, with a volume of 66,716 shares changing hands.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NGS has been the subject of a number of research reports. Raymond James Financial reissued a "strong-buy" rating and issued a $32.00 price objective (down previously from $33.00) on shares of Natural Gas Services Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on Natural Gas Services Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Natural Gas Services Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st.

Natural Gas Services Group Stock Up 2.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 2.10 and a quick ratio of 1.33. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $24.15 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $24.03. The company has a market cap of $315.63 million, a P/E ratio of 18.66 and a beta of 0.66.

Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The oil and gas company reported $0.38 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.11. Natural Gas Services Group had a return on equity of 6.99% and a net margin of 10.53%. The company had revenue of $41.38 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $40.52 million. On average, research analysts expect that Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. will post 1.42 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Natural Gas Services Group

In other news, Director Stephen Charles Taylor sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.90, for a total value of $622,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 433,334 shares in the company, valued at $10,790,016.60. This trade represents a 5.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 7.25% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Natural Gas Services Group

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NGS. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Natural Gas Services Group during the first quarter worth $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Natural Gas Services Group by 4,293.1% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,274 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 1,245 shares during the period. State of Wyoming lifted its holdings in Natural Gas Services Group by 116.0% during the first quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 4,427 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $97,000 after acquiring an additional 2,377 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in Natural Gas Services Group during the first quarter worth $115,000. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its holdings in Natural Gas Services Group by 31.5% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 6,022 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 1,443 shares during the period. 65.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Natural Gas Services Group Company Profile

Natural Gas Services Group, Inc provides natural gas compression equipment and services to the energy industry in the United States. It engineers and fabricates, operates, rents, and maintains natural gas compressors for oil and natural gas production and plant facilities. It also designs, fabricates, and assembles compressor units for rental or sale; and designs, manufactures, and sells a line of reciprocating natural gas compressor frames, cylinders, and parts.