CENTRAL TRUST Co Acquires 2,200 Shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

CENTRAL TRUST Co grew its position in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 234.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 3,140 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,200 shares during the quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $191,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 44.2% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,498,205 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $151,416,000 after purchasing an additional 765,236 shares during the last quarter. Ibex Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter worth $4,943,000. Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 243.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 102,672 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $6,223,000 after buying an additional 72,802 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 33.3% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 220,869 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $13,386,000 after buying an additional 55,152 shares during the period. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 86.3% during the 4th quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 92,881 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $5,662,000 after purchasing an additional 43,016 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on NFG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on National Fuel Gas from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Bank of America started coverage on National Fuel Gas in a report on Monday, October 28th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $62.00 price objective on the stock. Argus raised National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, StockNews.com raised National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Justin I. Loweth sold 19,532 shares of National Fuel Gas stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.27, for a total value of $1,216,257.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 41,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,605,439.07. The trade was a 31.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Donna L. Decarolis sold 10,000 shares of National Fuel Gas stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.58, for a total value of $625,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 81,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,101,459.02. The trade was a 10.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.41% of the stock is owned by insiders.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

NYSE NFG opened at $72.41 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $6.56 billion, a PE ratio of -517.16 and a beta of 0.64. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $63.81 and its 200-day simple moving average is $61.45. National Fuel Gas has a 1-year low of $45.32 and a 1-year high of $73.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.33.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.22. National Fuel Gas had a positive return on equity of 15.96% and a negative net margin of 0.53%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a $0.515 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.85%. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is presently -1,471.32%.

National Fuel Gas Company Profile

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.