National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Downgraded to Sell Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Monday morning.

NFG has been the subject of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Argus upgraded National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, Bank of America started coverage on National Fuel Gas in a research report on Monday, October 28th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $62.00 price target for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $69.00.

National Fuel Gas Stock Down 2.0 %

NFG opened at $68.10 on Monday. National Fuel Gas has a fifty-two week low of $45.32 and a fifty-two week high of $70.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The company’s 50-day moving average is $62.97 and its 200 day moving average is $60.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 84.08, a PEG ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.64.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is 254.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Donna L. Decarolis sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.58, for a total value of $625,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 81,519 shares in the company, valued at $5,101,459.02. The trade was a 10.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Justin I. Loweth sold 19,532 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.27, for a total transaction of $1,216,257.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 41,841 shares in the company, valued at $2,605,439.07. This trade represents a 31.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 1.55% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of National Fuel Gas

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NFG. Financial Advocates Investment Management lifted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 13.5% in the 4th quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 4,660 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $283,000 after acquiring an additional 556 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter worth approximately $282,000. Spirit of America Management Corp NY increased its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 96.8% during the 4th quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 3,050 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 1,500 shares during the last quarter. S.A. Mason LLC purchased a new stake in National Fuel Gas during the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Finally, CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 234.0% during the 4th quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 3,140 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $191,000 after buying an additional 2,200 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

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.