National Fuel Gas Company $NFG Shares Sold by South Dakota Investment Council

South Dakota Investment Council trimmed its holdings in National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) by 29.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 28,648 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 12,200 shares during the quarter. South Dakota Investment Council’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $2,646,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NFG. Fox Run Management L.L.C. lifted its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 80.0% in the second quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C. now owns 15,291 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,295,000 after purchasing an additional 6,796 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the third quarter valued at approximately $5,228,000. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 15.2% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 103,374 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $9,541,000 after acquiring an additional 13,620 shares in the last quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 152.2% during the second quarter. Orion Porfolio Solutions LLC now owns 34,345 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $2,909,000 after acquiring an additional 20,726 shares during the period. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC raised its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 26.6% during the third quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 127,075 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $11,738,000 after purchasing an additional 26,737 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NFG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Scotiabank set a $101.00 price target on National Fuel Gas in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research lowered National Fuel Gas from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of National Fuel Gas in a report on Monday, December 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $96.33.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NFG opened at $93.57 on Thursday. National Fuel Gas Company has a 52-week low of $69.93 and a 52-week high of $94.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.05, a PEG ratio of 1.20 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.59, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $83.99 and its 200 day simple moving average is $84.22.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.91 by $0.15. National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 21.45% and a net margin of 27.65%.The firm had revenue of $651.51 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $650.70 million. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.66 EPS. National Fuel Gas’s revenue was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. National Fuel Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.600-8.100 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that National Fuel Gas Company will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 31st were paid a $0.535 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.85%.

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.