Signaturefd LLC Decreases Position in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Signaturefd LLC trimmed its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 28.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,095 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 847 shares during the period. Signaturefd LLC’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $127,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 0.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,313,064 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $715,178,000 after purchasing an additional 104,587 shares during the last quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 2.4% during the first quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC now owns 2,595,437 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $139,427,000 after buying an additional 62,009 shares during the period. Gabelli Funds LLC grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 1.0% during the second quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 2,533,482 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $137,289,000 after buying an additional 24,800 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 46.5% during the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,732,969 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $93,910,000 after buying an additional 550,153 shares during the period. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 7.9% during the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 1,320,850 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $70,956,000 after buying an additional 96,410 shares during the period. 73.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts recently issued reports on NFG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $64.00 to $62.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. StockNews.com lowered shares of National Fuel Gas from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 19th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of National Fuel Gas in a research report on Monday. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $62.00 price target for the company. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of National Fuel Gas from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Michael W. Reville sold 1,700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.77, for a total value of $103,309.00. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 8,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $498,496.31. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.55% of the company’s stock.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

NFG stock opened at $61.29 on Tuesday. National Fuel Gas has a one year low of $45.32 and a one year high of $63.54. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $60.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $57.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.77. The company has a market capitalization of $5.60 billion, a PE ratio of 17.76 and a beta of 0.62.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $417.40 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $540.62 million. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 16.42% and a return on equity of 14.80%. National Fuel Gas’s revenue was down 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.01 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that National Fuel Gas will post 5.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th were paid a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 30th. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is 59.71%.

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.