National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $73.14 and last traded at $72.88, with a volume of 190723 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.20.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NFG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of National Fuel Gas in a report on Monday, October 28th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $62.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of National Fuel Gas from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.00.

National Fuel Gas Trading Down 0.9 %

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $66.25 and its 200 day moving average price is $62.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market cap of $6.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -519.68 and a beta of 0.64.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.22. National Fuel Gas had a positive return on equity of 15.96% and a negative net margin of 0.53%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.46 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.83%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is currently -1,471.32%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Justin I. Loweth sold 19,532 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.27, for a total transaction of $1,216,257.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 41,841 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,605,439.07. The trade was a 31.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Donna L. Decarolis sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.58, for a total value of $625,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 81,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,101,459.02. This trade represents a 10.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.41% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,584,155 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $156,807,000 after purchasing an additional 85,950 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,199,787 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $146,502,000 after buying an additional 117,351 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL raised its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 1,447,665 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $87,844,000 after buying an additional 70,332 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter worth $67,393,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in National Fuel Gas by 37.9% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,019,072 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $61,837,000 after purchasing an additional 279,857 shares during the period. 73.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

National Fuel Gas Company Profile

National Fuel Gas Company operates as a diversified energy company. It operates through four segments: Exploration and Production, Pipeline and Storage, Gathering, and Utility. The Exploration and Production segment explores for, develops, and produces natural gas and oil. The Pipeline and Storage segment provides interstate natural gas transportation services through an integrated gas pipeline system in Pennsylvania and New York; and owns and operates underground natural gas storage fields.