National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

Shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $89.82 and last traded at $88.86, with a volume of 1963738 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $84.07.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on NFG shares. Bank of America raised shares of National Fuel Gas from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $85.00 to $107.00 in a report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $88.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.33.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

The firm’s 50-day moving average is $83.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $76.80. The company has a market cap of $7.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 205.60, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.43.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $729.95 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $770.81 million. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 1.91% and a return on equity of 18.55%. The business’s revenue was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.79 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that National Fuel Gas Company will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, June 30th were given a $0.535 dividend. This is a positive change from National Fuel Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 30th. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 497.67%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On National Fuel Gas

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Oliver Lagore Vanvalin Investment Group acquired a new position in National Fuel Gas in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Assetmark Inc. raised 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. raised 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. Inlight Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. Finally, Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. 73.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About National Fuel Gas

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.