Cannell Capital LLC Increases Holdings in Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. $NGS

Cannell Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:NGS) by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 359,021 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after purchasing an additional 27,405 shares during the period. Natural Gas Services Group comprises about 1.5% of Cannell Capital LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest position. Cannell Capital LLC’s holdings in Natural Gas Services Group were worth $10,049,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its position in Natural Gas Services Group by 105.5% in the second quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,424 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 731 shares in the last quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund lifted its position in shares of Natural Gas Services Group by 106.7% during the 3rd quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund now owns 3,100 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $87,000 after buying an additional 1,600 shares in the last quarter. Arthur M. Cohen & Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Natural Gas Services Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $218,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Natural Gas Services Group during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $225,000. Finally, Man Group plc purchased a new stake in Natural Gas Services Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $231,000. Institutional investors own 65.62% of the company’s stock.

Natural Gas Services Group Stock Performance

NYSE:NGS opened at $35.64 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.83, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $16.73 and a 12-month high of $39.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $36.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $448.05 million, a P/E ratio of 24.08 and a beta of 0.34.

Natural Gas Services Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, February 18th were paid a $0.11 dividend. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, February 18th. Natural Gas Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.73%.

Insider Transactions at Natural Gas Services Group

In other Natural Gas Services Group news, Director Stephen Charles Taylor sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $37.23, for a total transaction of $1,116,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 175,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,531,333.36. This trade represents a 14.60% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 5.08% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on NGS. Raymond James Financial cut shares of Natural Gas Services Group from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $34.00 to $42.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Zacks Research cut shares of Natural Gas Services Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Natural Gas Services Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $40.50.

About Natural Gas Services Group

Natural Gas Services Group, Inc (NYSE: NGS) is an energy infrastructure company specializing in natural gas distribution and compression services across the United States. The company operates two primary lines of business: the Distribution segment provides natural gas delivery to residential, commercial and industrial customers, while the Compression Services segment rents, sells and services a diversified fleet of compression equipment for midstream and industrial applications.

In its Distribution segment, Natural Gas Services Group engineers, constructs and maintains local pipeline networks, meters and related apparatus to ensure safe and reliable natural gas supply to municipal utilities and private customers.