National Fuel Gas Company $NFG Shares Acquired by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) by 9.1% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 212,091 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,713 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $19,928,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NFG. Phocas Financial Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $7,086,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 84.6% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 61,728 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $4,942,000 after buying an additional 28,293 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 315,753 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $25,911,000 after acquiring an additional 24,988 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new position in National Fuel Gas during the first quarter worth $63,863,000. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its position in National Fuel Gas by 294.9% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 13,976 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,119,000 after acquiring an additional 10,437 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

NFG stock opened at $80.84 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $78.77 and a 200-day moving average of $84.43. National Fuel Gas Company has a 12-month low of $75.17 and a 12-month high of $97.06. 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 company has a market cap of $7.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.94, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 0.37.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.85 by ($0.14). The firm had revenue of $858.37 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.39 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that National Fuel Gas Company will post 7.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a dividend of $0.555 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 30th. This is a positive change 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%. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.04%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. KeyCorp assumed coverage on National Fuel Gas in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $110.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings cut shares of National Fuel Gas from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, National Fuel Gas currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.50.

National Fuel Gas Company Profile

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.