Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Key Points

• Analyst consensus: Six analysts give Northwest Natural Gas a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" (three buys, three holds) with an average 12‑month target of $54.50 and several price targets raised up to $58.00.
• Insider and institutional activity: A VP sold 1,700 shares (reducing their stake by 91.94%), insiders own about 0.93% of the stock while institutional investors hold roughly 75.13%.
• Results and dividend: Northwest Natural reported Q earnings of $1.39/share (beat by $0.03) but revenue missed expectations, set FY2026 EPS guidance of 2.95–3.15, and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.4925 (annual $1.97, 3.6% yield) with a payout ratio around 70.9% (article notes this reflects a dividend cut).

Shares of Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the six analysts that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $54.50.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on NWN shares. BTIG Research restated a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Northwest Natural Gas from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd. TD Cowen set a $58.00 price objective on Northwest Natural Gas and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on Northwest Natural Gas from $52.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP David A. Weber sold 1,700 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.57, for a total value of $89,369.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 149 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,832.93. This trade represents a 91.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,704 shares of company stock valued at $89,579. 0.93% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NWN. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Northwest Natural Gas in the third quarter valued at about $26,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 77.4% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 807 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 104.3% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 711 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Northwest Natural Gas during the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Northwest Natural Gas by 95.6% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,344 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 657 shares during the period. 75.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Northwest Natural Gas Stock Performance

NWN traded up $0.13 during trading on Thursday, hitting $54.52. 140,505 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 302,675. Northwest Natural Gas has a one year low of $39.10 and a one year high of $55.99. The stock's fifty day moving average is $52.12 and its 200 day moving average is $48.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The firm has a market cap of $2.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.61 and a beta of 0.50.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.03. Northwest Natural Gas had a net margin of 8.79% and a return on equity of 8.24%. The firm had revenue of $394.16 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $419.36 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.41 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. Northwest Natural Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.150 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Northwest Natural Gas will post 2.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Gas Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be issued a $0.4925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Northwest Natural Gas's dividend payout ratio is presently 70.86%.

Northwest Natural Gas Company Profile

Northwest Natural Gas NYSE: NWN, commonly known as NW Natural, is a publicly traded energy utility primarily engaged in the distribution of natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, the company operates an extensive pipeline network spanning thousands of miles across Oregon and southwest Washington. Its core business activities include gas procurement, system operation and maintenance, safety inspections and customer service support.

Dating back to the mid-19th century, Northwest Natural traces its origins to the Portland Gas Light Company, which first illuminated Portland streets with manufactured gas in 1859.

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