National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Raised to “Hold” at Wall Street Zen

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

Separately, Weiss Ratings cut shares of National Fuel Gas from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.50.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NFG stock opened at $81.91 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $79.44 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 3.07 and a current ratio of 3.20. The stock has a market cap of $7.78 billion, a PE ratio of 11.38, a P/E/G ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 0.37. National Fuel Gas has a 1 year low of $75.17 and a 1 year high of $97.06.

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. National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 19.04% and a net margin of 26.97%.The company had revenue of $537.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $564.33 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.64 earnings per share. National Fuel Gas’s revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that National Fuel Gas will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of National Fuel Gas

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NFG. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its position in National Fuel Gas by 458.0% during the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 279 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 229 shares in the last quarter. Fairscale Capital LLC purchased a new position in National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. HM Payson & Co. purchased a new position in National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 170.2% during the 1st quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 516 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. 73.96% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.