Stifel Nicolaus Boosts Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) Price Target to $52.00

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) had its price objective lifted by Stifel Nicolaus from $50.00 to $52.00 in a research report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a “buy” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Stifel Nicolaus’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 8.56% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also recently commented on NWN. BTIG Research raised shares of Northwest Natural Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Northwest Natural Gas to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northwest Natural Gas presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $50.67.

Northwest Natural Gas Trading Up 1.9%

Shares of NWN stock opened at $47.90 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.93 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 0.52 and a current ratio of 0.68. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $44.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.25. Northwest Natural Gas has a 52-week low of $38.03 and a 52-week high of $48.00.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported ($0.73) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.82) by $0.09. The company had revenue of $164.73 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $174.66 million. Northwest Natural Gas had a return on equity of 8.60% and a net margin of 8.34%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 20.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted ($0.71) EPS. Northwest Natural Gas has set its FY 2025 guidance at 2.750-2.950 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Northwest Natural Gas will post 2.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northwest Natural Gas news, Director David Hugo Anderson sold 10,509 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $472,905.00. Following the sale, the director owned 51,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,336,490. This trade represents a 16.83% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 42,869 shares of company stock valued at $1,882,588. 0.93% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd bought a new stake in Northwest Natural Gas in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $26,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 77.4% in the 2nd quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 807 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. MCF Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas in the 1st quarter worth about $38,000. Hantz Financial Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 44.3% during the second quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 1,143 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 95.6% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 657 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.13% of the company’s stock.

Northwest Natural Gas Company Profile

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.