National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $106.00.

Several research analysts have commented on NFG shares. KeyCorp started coverage on National Fuel Gas in a research report on Tuesday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $110.00 price target on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of National Fuel Gas in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research raised National Fuel Gas from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, Scotiabank set a $101.00 price target on National Fuel Gas in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NFG opened at $94.48 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 0.65. National Fuel Gas has a fifty-two week low of $69.93 and a fifty-two week high of $97.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.98 billion, a PE ratio of 13.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 0.52. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $90.00 and its 200-day simple moving average is $85.31.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.06 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.91 by $0.15. National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 21.45% and a net margin of 27.65%.The business had revenue of $651.51 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $650.70 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.66 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 18.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.535 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 31st. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.3%. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is 29.85%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NFG. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the third quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. HM Payson & Co. acquired a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 88.5% in the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 360 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the period. Finally, Hantz Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 105.3% in the third quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 423 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 217 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

About National Fuel Gas

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.