National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Holdings Cut by Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 28.8% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 14,665 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 5,935 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $788,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in National Fuel Gas by 437.8% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 82,750 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $4,296,000 after purchasing an additional 67,362 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 45.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 334,120 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $17,344,000 after acquiring an additional 105,074 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 71.1% in the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 71,774 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $3,726,000 after acquiring an additional 29,834 shares in the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 66.9% during the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 21,496 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,116,000 after purchasing an additional 8,616 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Natixis Advisors L.P. raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 65.3% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors L.P. now owns 21,816 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after purchasing an additional 8,617 shares in the last quarter. 73.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, General Counsel Michael W. Reville sold 6,357 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.83, for a total value of $348,554.31. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 9,903 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $542,981.49. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 1.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NFG has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on National Fuel Gas from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 9th.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

NYSE NFG opened at $54.20 on Tuesday. National Fuel Gas has a 1 year low of $45.32 and a 1 year high of $57.60. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $55.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $52.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The company has a market cap of $4.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.75 and a beta of 0.62.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $1.79 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.38. The firm had revenue of $629.94 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $767.33 million. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 23.84% and a return on equity of 15.06%. The business’s revenue was down 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.54 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that National Fuel Gas will post 5.07 EPS for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be issued a $0.515 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.80%. This is a positive change from National Fuel Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.87%.

National Fuel Gas 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.