Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Purchases 1,626 Shares of Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. grew its position in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) by 18.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,631 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,626 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Northwest Natural were worth $384,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 173.5% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 796 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 505 shares in the last quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in Northwest Natural in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $32,000. CWM LLC raised its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 686.5% during the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,046 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 913 shares during the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 12,044.4% during the second quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 1,093 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,084 shares during the period. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Northwest Natural in the first quarter valued at $48,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 75.13% of the company’s stock.

Northwest Natural Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:NWN opened at $40.63 on Tuesday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $39.22 and its 200 day moving average is $37.66. Northwest Natural Holding has a 12-month low of $34.82 and a 12-month high of $41.19. The stock has a market cap of $1.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.82 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 2nd. The utilities provider reported ($0.07) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.06. The company had revenue of $211.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $231.99 million. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 7.18% and a return on equity of 6.31%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.03 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st were issued a $0.488 dividend. This represents a $1.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.80%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, July 31st. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 85.53%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on NWN shares. StockNews.com raised Northwest Natural from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Janney Montgomery Scott raised Northwest Natural from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $36.00 to $43.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th.

About Northwest Natural

Northwest Natural Holding Company, through its subsidiary, Northwest Natural Gas Company, provides regulated natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the United States. The company operates a mist gas storage facility contracted to other utilities, third-party marketers, and electric generators; offers natural gas asset management services; and operates an appliance retail center.