Equity Investment Corp Trims Stock Position in National Fuel Gas Company $NFG

Equity Investment Corp lowered its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,099,928 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 67,009 shares during the quarter. National Fuel Gas comprises 2.0% of Equity Investment Corp’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest position. Equity Investment Corp owned approximately 1.22% of National Fuel Gas worth $93,175,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 9,475.0% during the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 383 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 379 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 316.7% during the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 400 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 304 shares during the period. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the 1st quarter worth approximately $55,000. Finally, Dagco Inc. purchased a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the first quarter worth $64,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

National Fuel Gas Trading Up 0.5%

NYSE NFG opened at $80.30 on Wednesday. National Fuel Gas Company has a 12 month low of $58.82 and a 12 month high of $94.13. The stock has a market cap of $7.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.19, a P/E/G ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 0.58. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $86.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 30th were given a dividend of $0.535 per share. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, September 30th. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is 80.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on NFG shares. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of National Fuel Gas in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Scotiabank downgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $102.00 to $106.00 in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. Bank of America upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $107.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of National Fuel Gas from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday, August 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $98.00.

National Fuel Gas 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.