Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Cuts Stock Position in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd lowered its position in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 18.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,683 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 1,910 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $527,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NFG. Wealthspire Advisors LLC boosted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 11,826 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $718,000 after purchasing an additional 326 shares in the last quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 36.5% in the 4th quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc. now owns 13,240 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $803,000 after purchasing an additional 3,539 shares in the last quarter. ING Groep NV acquired a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,086,000. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors acquired a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter worth approximately $367,000. Finally, Cardinal Capital Management boosted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 0.9% in the 4th quarter. Cardinal Capital Management now owns 93,429 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $5,717,000 after purchasing an additional 799 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NFG has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of 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. Argus upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $69.00.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NFG opened at $75.18 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. National Fuel Gas has a 12 month low of $48.32 and a 12 month high of $75.21. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $67.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $63.25. The stock has a market cap of $6.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -536.96 and a beta of 0.64.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.22. National Fuel Gas had a negative net margin of 0.53% and a positive return on equity of 15.96%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.46 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is currently -1,471.43%.

Insider Activity at National Fuel Gas

In related news, insider Donna L. Decarolis sold 10,000 shares of the business’s 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 81,519 shares in the company, valued at $5,101,459.02. The trade was a 10.93 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Justin I. Loweth sold 19,532 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.27, for a total transaction of $1,216,257.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 41,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,605,439.07. This represents a 31.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.41% of the company’s stock.

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.