National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Shares Sold by ProShare Advisors LLC

ProShare Advisors LLC trimmed its position in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 8.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 580,752 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 56,102 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned 0.63% of National Fuel Gas worth $31,471,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in National Fuel Gas during the 1st quarter worth about $1,748,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 263,689 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $13,229,000 after purchasing an additional 20,203 shares during the period. Equity Investment Corp grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 27.7% during the 1st quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 1,242,186 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $66,730,000 after purchasing an additional 269,441 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 478.8% during the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 86,567 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $4,650,000 after purchasing an additional 71,612 shares during the period. Finally, Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. grew its position in National Fuel Gas by 12.6% during the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 130,375 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $7,004,000 after purchasing an additional 14,604 shares during the period. 73.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NFG has been the topic of several analyst reports. Scotiabank increased their price target on 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. StockNews.com cut National Fuel Gas from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on National Fuel Gas from $64.00 to $62.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 12th.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

NYSE:NFG opened at $60.30 on Monday. National Fuel Gas has a 52 week low of $45.32 and a 52 week high of $61.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.54 billion, a PE ratio of 11.96 and a beta of 0.62. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $58.92 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.93.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $417.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 quarterly revenue was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.01 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that National Fuel Gas will post 5.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 30th will be paid a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.87%.

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.