Insider Selling: Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) Director Sells $76,290.00 in Stock

Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN) Director David Hugo Anderson sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.86, for a total value of $76,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 50,759 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,581,602.74. This represents a 2.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink.

David Hugo Anderson also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Monday, July 20th, David Hugo Anderson sold 1,500 shares of Northwest Natural Gas stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.18, for a total value of $76,770.00.

Northwest Natural Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NWN opened at $50.54 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $50.18 and a 200-day moving average of $50.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.77. Northwest Natural Gas Company has a twelve month low of $40.54 and a twelve month high of $55.99. The firm has a market cap of $2.13 billion, a PE ratio of 16.85 and a beta of 0.43.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by $0.09. Northwest Natural Gas had a net margin of 9.75% and a return on equity of 8.33%. The business had revenue of $243.55 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $271.87 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.01 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. Northwest Natural Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.150 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Northwest Natural Gas Company will post 3.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st were given a dividend of $0.4925 per share. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 31st. Northwest Natural Gas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 65.67%.

Institutional Trading of Northwest Natural Gas

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWN. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 77.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 807 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 104.3% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 711 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 197.5% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 723 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC acquired a new position in Northwest Natural Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $41,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in Northwest Natural Gas in the second quarter valued at approximately $45,000. 75.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on NWN shares. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of Northwest Natural Gas from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $50.00 price target for the company in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Freedom Capital raised Northwest Natural Gas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research report on Friday, May 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $55.25.

Northwest Natural Gas Company Profile

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.