Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) Stock Price Expected to Rise, Stifel Nicolaus Analyst Says

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) had its target price boosted by analysts at Stifel Nicolaus from $45.00 to $49.00 in a report released on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the utilities provider's stock. Stifel Nicolaus' price target suggests a potential upside of 23.43% from the stock's current price.

Separately, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Northwest Natural from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th.

Northwest Natural Stock Performance

NYSE NWN traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $39.70. The company had a trading volume of 492,902 shares, compared to its average volume of 251,072. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $41.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $41.15. Northwest Natural has a fifty-two week low of $34.82 and a fifty-two week high of $44.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The stock has a market cap of $1.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73 and a beta of 0.54.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.09 by $0.19. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 6.90% and a return on equity of 5.89%. The business had revenue of $494.28 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $464.65 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.69 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 14.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Northwest Natural will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP David A. Weber sold 2,183 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.46, for a total value of $92,690.18. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 255 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,827.30. The trade was a 89.54% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director David Hugo Anderson sold 7,591 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.99, for a total value of $311,155.09. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 102,291 shares in the company, valued at $4,192,908.09. This trade represents a 6.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 24,774 shares of company stock valued at $1,037,295 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NWN. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 615,126 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $24,334,000 after purchasing an additional 46,135 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in Northwest Natural by 17.5% in the fourth quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 74,863 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,962,000 after buying an additional 11,160 shares in the last quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Northwest Natural in the fourth quarter valued at about $186,000. Atria Investments Inc bought a new stake in Northwest Natural during the fourth quarter worth about $270,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 2,906 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $115,000 after buying an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. 75.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Northwest Natural

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.