Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) Sets New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $49.92 and last traded at $49.84, with a volume of 43093 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $48.85.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on NWN shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Northwest Natural Gas from $50.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Finally, BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $51.33.

Northwest Natural Gas Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $2.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.82 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $46.91 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $45.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.48, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.59.

Northwest Natural Gas Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 30th will be issued a dividend of $1.97 per share. This represents a $7.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 15.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 30th. This is an increase from Northwest Natural Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Northwest Natural Gas’s payout ratio is currently 78.49%.

Insider Transactions at Northwest Natural Gas

In other Northwest Natural Gas news, Director David Hugo Anderson sold 7,468 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $47.95, for a total transaction of $358,090.60. Following the transaction, the director owned 36,954 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,771,944.30. This trade represents a 16.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northwest Natural Gas

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWN. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 6.7% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,083,304 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $82,749,000 after purchasing an additional 131,019 shares during the period. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. grew its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 14.9% during the 3rd quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. now owns 1,403,975 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $63,081,000 after purchasing an additional 181,635 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in Northwest Natural Gas by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 989,578 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $46,261,000 after purchasing an additional 16,297 shares in the last quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. raised its holdings in Northwest Natural Gas by 20.7% in the second quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 940,470 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,355,000 after buying an additional 161,000 shares during the period. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Northwest Natural Gas by 0.4% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 860,956 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,683,000 after buying an additional 3,512 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.13% of the company’s stock.

About Northwest Natural Gas

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE: NWN), commonly known as NW Natural, is a publicly traded energy utility primarily engaged in the distribution of natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, the company operates an extensive pipeline network spanning thousands of miles across Oregon and southwest Washington. Its core business activities include gas procurement, system operation and maintenance, safety inspections and customer service support.

Dating back to the mid-19th century, Northwest Natural traces its origins to the Portland Gas Light Company, which first illuminated Portland streets with manufactured gas in 1859.