First Trust Advisors LP Raises Position in National Grid Transco, PLC $NGG

First Trust Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of National Grid Transco, PLC (NYSE:NGG) by 44.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 26,665 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,162 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in National Grid Transco were worth $2,256,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in shares of National Grid Transco by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 4,751,505 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $345,292,000 after buying an additional 155,118 shares during the last quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in National Grid Transco by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 3,169,406 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $245,154,000 after acquiring an additional 9,928 shares during the last quarter. Milford Funds Ltd. purchased a new position in National Grid Transco in the 4th quarter worth approximately $183,208,000. Royal Bank of Canada increased its stake in National Grid Transco by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,313,445 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $178,945,000 after purchasing an additional 176,840 shares during the period. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of National Grid Transco by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,199,519 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $170,133,000 after buying an additional 29,832 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 4.68% of the company’s stock.

National Grid Transco Trading Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:NGG opened at $80.91 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $81.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.29. National Grid Transco, PLC has a twelve month low of $67.51 and a twelve month high of $94.64.

National Grid Transco Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 23rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 29th were given a $2.1738 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 29th. This represents a yield of 533.0%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on NGG shares. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of National Grid Transco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a report on Monday, June 1st. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $85.50.

National Grid Transco Profile

National Grid Transco (NYSE: NGG) is a utility company focused on the transmission and distribution of electricity and natural gas. The company builds, owns, operates and maintains large-scale energy infrastructure, including high-voltage electricity transmission lines, electricity distribution networks and high-pressure gas pipelines. Its core activities center on providing safe, reliable delivery of energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers while meeting regulatory requirements across its service territories.

Services provided by National Grid Transco encompass network operation and maintenance, system balancing and control, metering and connections, and capital investment in grid modernization and reliability projects.