National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Rating Lowered to Sell at StockNews.com

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFGGet Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America started coverage on National Fuel Gas in a report on Monday, October 28th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $62.00 target price for the company. Argus raised National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of National Fuel Gas from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.00.

Check Out Our Latest Stock Report on NFG

National Fuel Gas Stock Down 0.1 %

National Fuel Gas stock opened at $68.02 on Monday. National Fuel Gas has a fifty-two week low of $45.32 and a fifty-two week high of $70.12. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $63.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $60.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 83.97, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.25.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Justin I. Loweth sold 19,532 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.27, for a total transaction of $1,216,257.64. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 41,841 shares in the company, valued at $2,605,439.07. This represents a 31.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Donna L. Decarolis sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.58, for a total value of $625,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 81,519 shares in the company, valued at $5,101,459.02. This represents a 10.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of National Fuel Gas

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Capital Performance Advisors LLP acquired a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 82.9% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 481 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, S.A. Mason LLC bought a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

About National Fuel Gas

(Get Free Report)

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.

Further Reading

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