Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) Sets New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Shares hit a new 52-week high of $54.70 and analysts are generally bullish—Stifel raised its target to $58 and the consensus rating is a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $53.33.
• Northwest Natural sharply increased its quarterly dividend to $1.97 (from $0.49), implying an annualized payout of $7.88 and a 14.4% yield with a payout ratio around 70.9%.
• Recent quarter: EPS beat at $1.39 versus $1.36 but revenue missed expectations, and management set FY 2026 guidance of 2.95–3.15 EPS; the company shows notable leverage (debt-to-equity 1.54) and limited liquidity (current ratio 0.72).

Shares of Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Monday . The stock traded as high as $54.70 and last traded at $54.3950, with a volume of 203647 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $54.66.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NWN has been the topic of several research reports. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Northwest Natural Gas from $52.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 price target on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research note on Friday, January 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Northwest Natural Gas from a "hold (c)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Monday, March 2nd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $53.33.

Northwest Natural Gas Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.54. The company has a market cap of $2.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.61 and a beta of 0.50. The company's fifty day moving average is $50.74 and its 200 day moving average is $47.92.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $1.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.36 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $394.16 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $419.36 million. Northwest Natural Gas had a return on equity of 8.24% and a net margin of 8.79%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.41 earnings per share. 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 Company will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Gas Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 30th were paid a $1.97 dividend. This is an increase from Northwest Natural Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 30th. This represents a $7.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 14.4%. Northwest Natural Gas's payout ratio is presently 70.86%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northwest Natural Gas

In other 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 transaction, the vice president owned 149 shares in the company, valued at approximately $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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders sold a total of 1,704 shares of company stock worth $89,579 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northwest Natural Gas

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. 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 bought a new stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas in the fourth quarter worth 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.13% of the company's stock.

About Northwest Natural Gas

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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