Scotiabank Issues Positive Forecast for National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Stock Price

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) had its price target lifted by Scotiabank from $88.00 to $98.00 in a research note released on Friday,Benzinga reports. Scotiabank currently has a sector outperform rating on the oil and gas producer's stock.

NFG has been the subject of several other reports. Wall Street Zen raised shares of National Fuel Gas from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, June 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $88.00.

National Fuel Gas Stock Up 0.8%

NYSE NFG traded up $0.62 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $82.81. 582,238 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 567,934. National Fuel Gas has a 52-week low of $55.93 and a 52-week high of $86.45. The firm has a market cap of $7.48 billion, a PE ratio of 192.59, a PEG ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.62. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.84 and a 200 day simple moving average of $76.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.39 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.21. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 18.55%. The company had revenue of $729.95 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $770.81 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.79 EPS. National Fuel Gas's revenue was up 15.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.535 per share. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.58%. This is a boost from National Fuel Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 30th. National Fuel Gas's payout ratio is presently 497.67%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NFG. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $67,393,000. LSV Asset Management raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 29.6% during the first quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,153,236 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $170,515,000 after purchasing an additional 491,890 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 93.7% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 951,069 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $75,315,000 after purchasing an additional 460,100 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 98.9% during the first quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 715,645 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $56,672,000 after purchasing an additional 355,800 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 37.9% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,019,072 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $61,837,000 after buying an additional 279,857 shares during the period. 73.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About National Fuel Gas

National Fuel Gas Company operates as a diversified energy company. It operates through four segments: Exploration and Production, Pipeline and Storage, Gathering, and Utility. The Exploration and Production segment explores for, develops, and produces natural gas and oil. The Pipeline and Storage segment provides interstate natural gas transportation services through an integrated gas pipeline system in Pennsylvania and New York; and owns and operates underground natural gas storage fields.