Sanctuary Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 18,429 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $992,000.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of NFG. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in National Fuel Gas by 46.5% during the 2nd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,732,969 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $93,910,000 after buying an additional 550,153 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 159.5% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 880,434 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $47,711,000 after purchasing an additional 541,176 shares in the last quarter. Equity Investment Corp increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 27.7% in the 1st quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 1,242,186 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $66,730,000 after purchasing an additional 269,441 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 194.3% in the 2nd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 378,588 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $20,516,000 after purchasing an additional 249,967 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 262.5% in the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 318,078 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $17,237,000 after purchasing an additional 230,332 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other National Fuel Gas news, General Counsel Michael W. Reville sold 1,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.77, for a total transaction of $103,309.00. Following the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 8,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $498,496.31. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 1.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on NFG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of National Fuel Gas from $64.00 to $62.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 12th. Scotiabank increased their price target on shares of National Fuel Gas from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NFG opened at $60.35 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $5.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.49 and a beta of 0.62. National Fuel Gas has a 52 week low of $45.32 and a 52 week high of $61.56. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $59.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $56.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $417.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $540.62 million. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 16.42% and a return on equity of 14.80%. The firm’s revenue was down 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.01 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that National Fuel Gas will post 5.05 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.515 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.41%. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.71%.

About National Fuel Gas

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.