Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC Buys Shares of 7,866 National Fuel Gas Company $NFG

Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new position in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 7,866 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $607,000.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its position in National Fuel Gas by 30.0% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 159,953 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $12,667,000 after purchasing an additional 36,913 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC purchased a new position in National Fuel Gas during the first quarter worth about $247,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 220,730 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $17,480,000 after purchasing an additional 8,304 shares during the last quarter. Focus Partners Wealth boosted its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 79.5% in the 1st quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 12,729 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,008,000 after purchasing an additional 5,638 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in National Fuel Gas in the first quarter worth approximately $138,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NFG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of National Fuel Gas from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Wall Street Zen raised National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, National Fuel Gas currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $105.50.

National Fuel Gas Trading Down 0.3%

NYSE NFG opened at $81.71 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $79.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $84.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 3.20 and a quick ratio of 3.07. 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 capitalization of $7.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.37.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $537.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $564.33 million. National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 19.04% and a net margin of 26.97%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.64 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that National Fuel Gas Company will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were paid a $0.555 dividend. This is a boost from National Fuel Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.83%.

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.