Royce & Associates LP Sells 10,000 Shares of Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:NGS)

Royce & Associates LP cut its stake in Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:NGS) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 242,843 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after selling 10,000 shares during the period. Royce & Associates LP’s holdings in Natural Gas Services Group were worth $6,508,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NGS. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in Natural Gas Services Group in the 4th quarter worth about $5,733,000. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Natural Gas Services Group by 119.8% in the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 229,294 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $6,145,000 after purchasing an additional 124,978 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Natural Gas Services Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,001,000. Inspire Investing LLC purchased a new position in Natural Gas Services Group during the 4th quarter worth $890,000. Finally, State Street Corp raised its position in Natural Gas Services Group by 19.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 162,646 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $3,108,000 after purchasing an additional 26,069 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 65.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Natural Gas Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday.

Natural Gas Services Group Price Performance

Shares of NGS stock opened at $21.82 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $25.86 and its 200 day moving average is $23.92. Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.70 and a 1-year high of $29.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 1.76 and a quick ratio of 1.16. The company has a market cap of $272.47 million, a P/E ratio of 17.04 and a beta of 1.13.

Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, March 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.02. Natural Gas Services Group had a net margin of 10.55% and a return on equity of 6.60%. The firm had revenue of $40.66 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $40.84 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.14 EPS. Research analysts predict that Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. will post 1.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Natural Gas Services Group

In other news, Director Stephen Charles Taylor sold 19,400 shares of Natural Gas Services Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $28.80, for a total transaction of $558,720.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 438,387 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,625,545.60. The trade was a 4.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 7.25% of the company’s stock.

Natural Gas Services Group Company Profile

Natural Gas Services Group, Inc provides natural gas compression equipment and services to the energy industry in the United States. It engineers and fabricates, operates, rents, and maintains natural gas compressors for oil and natural gas production and plant facilities. It also designs, fabricates, and assembles compressor units for rental or sale; and designs, manufactures, and sells a line of reciprocating natural gas compressor frames, cylinders, and parts.