Weiss Ratings Reiterates Hold (C) Rating for Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reiterated a "Hold (C)" rating for Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN), amidst other analysts also holding similar stances, with a consensus average target price set at $48.00.
• Northwest Natural Gas reported a quarterly earnings of $0.01 EPS, surpassing estimates of ($0.07), but fell short on revenue expectations with $236.19 million against a forecast of $252.70 million.
• Director David Hugo Anderson sold 7,795 shares of Northwest Natural Gas stock, reflecting a 9.78% decrease in his position, while insiders have collectively sold 27,430 shares in the past 90 days.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c)" rating reissued by research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research note issued on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Northwest Natural Gas to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on shares of Northwest Natural Gas from $45.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $48.00.

Northwest Natural Gas Price Performance

Shares of NWN stock traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $44.09. 4,402 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 266,672. Northwest Natural Gas has a 12 month low of $38.03 and a 12 month high of $45.07. The company has a market cap of $1.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.43 and a beta of 0.57. The company's 50 day moving average price is $41.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $41.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.68.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.07) by $0.08. The company had revenue of $236.19 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $252.70 million. Northwest Natural Gas had a net margin of 8.34% and a return on equity of 8.60%. Northwest Natural Gas has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.750-2.950 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Northwest Natural Gas will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Northwest Natural Gas

In other Northwest Natural Gas news, Director David Hugo Anderson sold 7,795 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.13, for a total value of $328,403.35. Following the sale, the director owned 71,922 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,030,073.86. The trade was a 9.78% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders have sold a total of 27,430 shares of company stock worth $1,154,608 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.93% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northwest Natural Gas

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NWN. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 199,834 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,537,000 after purchasing an additional 5,317 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 23,956 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,023,000 after purchasing an additional 843 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 24.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,689 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $72,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 105,235 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,496,000 after purchasing an additional 9,612 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IMS Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas in the 2nd quarter worth about $564,000. Institutional investors own 75.13% of the company's stock.

Northwest Natural Gas Company Profile

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.

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