Bank of New York Mellon Corp Boosts Holdings in National Fuel Gas Company $NFG

Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) by 2.6% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 947,563 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 24,003 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $89,033,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its position in National Fuel Gas by 458.0% in the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 279 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the period. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. HM Payson & Co. purchased a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, SHP Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. 73.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NFG has been the subject of several analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut National Fuel Gas from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. KeyCorp started coverage on National Fuel Gas in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $110.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.50.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NFG stock opened at $80.84 on Wednesday. National Fuel Gas Company has a 12 month low of $75.17 and a 12 month high of $97.06. The company has a market cap of $7.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.94, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $78.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.43.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.85 by ($0.14). The business had revenue of $858.37 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $856.57 million. National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 20.62% and a net margin of 27.48%.National Fuel Gas’s revenue was up 17.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.39 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that National Fuel Gas Company will post 7.66 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a $0.555 dividend. This is a positive change from National Fuel Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is 30.04%.

About National Fuel Gas

National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE: NFG) is a diversified energy company engaged primarily in the production, gathering, transmission, distribution and marketing of natural gas. The company operates through four principal segments: Exploration & Production, Pipeline & Storage, Utilities, and Energy Marketing. Its integrated asset base spans upstream development in the Appalachian Basin, regional pipeline networks, underground storage facilities, and regulated utility distribution systems.

In its Exploration & Production segment, National Fuel Gas focuses on developing natural gas reserves in the Marcellus and Utica shales, leveraging modern drilling and completion techniques.