Rodgers Brothers Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Rodgers Brothers Inc. lessened its position in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 92,464 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 937 shares during the period. Rodgers Brothers Inc. owned 0.10% of National Fuel Gas worth $5,611,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NFG. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 12.6% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 7,698 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $467,000 after purchasing an additional 859 shares during the period. Clear Creek Financial Management LLC bought a new position in National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter worth $238,000. Zacks Investment Management purchased a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the 3rd quarter worth about $957,000. Vestcor Inc purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the third quarter valued at about $716,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in National Fuel Gas by 76.1% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 31,790 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,927,000 after buying an additional 13,739 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, March 13th. StockNews.com raised National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, National Fuel Gas presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $74.67.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NFG opened at $78.81 on Monday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $73.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $65.70. National Fuel Gas has a fifty-two week low of $51.46 and a fifty-two week high of $79.49. The company has a market capitalization of $7.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -562.85 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.39.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.22. National Fuel Gas had a positive return on equity of 15.96% and a negative net margin of 0.53%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.46 earnings per share. Analysts expect that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be paid a dividend of $0.515 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.61%. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is currently -1,471.43%.

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.