VELA Investment Management LLC Raises Holdings in National Fuel Gas Company $NFG

VELA Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) by 33.5% during the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 45,298 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,373 shares during the quarter. VELA Investment Management LLC’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $3,497,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. boosted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 458.0% in 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 acquired a new position in National Fuel Gas during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. HM Payson & Co. acquired a new position in National Fuel Gas during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the first quarter worth $38,000. Finally, SHP Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. 73.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of National Fuel Gas from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of National Fuel Gas in a research note on Monday, August 31st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded National Fuel Gas from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $105.50.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

NYSE:NFG opened at $83.29 on Tuesday. National Fuel Gas Company has a one year low of $75.17 and a one year high of $97.06. 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 firm has a market cap of $7.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.57, a PEG ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.37. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $81.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.36.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $537.50 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $564.33 million. National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 19.04% and a net margin of 26.97%.The company’s revenue was up 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.64 EPS. Research analysts expect that National Fuel Gas Company will post 7.49 EPS for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were issued a dividend of $0.555 per share. This represents a $2.22 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. This is a positive change from National Fuel Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is 30.83%.

National Fuel Gas Company Profile

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.