Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS) Rating Increased to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Wednesday.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on NGS. Raymond James restated 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 report on Wednesday, March 19th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Natural Gas Services Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th.

Natural Gas Services Group Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of Natural Gas Services Group stock traded up $0.23 on Wednesday, hitting $24.28. 56,102 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 74,683. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $20.72 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $24.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $304.23 million, a PE ratio of 18.97 and a beta of 0.53. Natural Gas Services Group has a one year low of $16.70 and a one year high of $29.74.

Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The oil and gas company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.11. Natural Gas Services Group had a return on equity of 6.60% and a net margin of 10.55%. The business had revenue of $41.38 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.52 million. On average, research analysts expect that Natural Gas Services Group will post 1.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other Natural Gas Services Group news, Director Stephen Charles Taylor sold 25,000 shares of Natural Gas Services Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.90, for a total value of $622,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 433,334 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,790,016.60. This trade represents a 5.45% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 5.08% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Natural Gas Services Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of Natural Gas Services Group by 4,293.1% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,274 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 1,245 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming lifted its position in shares of Natural Gas Services Group by 116.0% in the first quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 4,427 shares of the oil and gas company's stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 2,377 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in Natural Gas Services Group during the fourth quarter worth $128,000. Finally, AlphaQuest LLC bought a new position in Natural Gas Services Group in the first quarter valued at $115,000. 65.62% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Natural Gas Services Group

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.