Teacher Retirement System of Texas Grows Holdings in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 169.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 46,838 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 29,458 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas’ holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $2,842,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in NFG. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its position in National Fuel Gas by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,584,155 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $156,807,000 after purchasing an additional 85,950 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 920,918 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $55,817,000 after purchasing an additional 7,830 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 33.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 220,869 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $13,386,000 after buying an additional 55,152 shares in the last quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. lifted its position in National Fuel Gas by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. now owns 159,753 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $9,694,000 after buying an additional 792 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter worth approximately $9,067,000. 73.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.67.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

NYSE:NFG opened at $78.44 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.39. National Fuel Gas has a fifty-two week low of $51.46 and a fifty-two week high of $79.35. The firm has a market cap of $7.10 billion, a PE ratio of -560.25 and a beta of 0.57. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $72.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.31.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.22. National Fuel Gas had a negative net margin of 0.53% and a positive return on equity of 15.96%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.46 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be given a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is -1,471.43%.

National Fuel Gas Company 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.