Retirement Systems of Alabama Raises Holdings in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its holdings in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 236,598 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned 0.26% of National Fuel Gas worth $11,870,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NFG. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in National Fuel Gas by 119.8% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 567 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the last quarter. Quent Capital LLC boosted its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 166.4% in the 4th quarter. Quent Capital LLC now owns 690 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 431 shares during the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the third quarter worth $95,000. ORG Partners LLC purchased a new stake in National Fuel Gas during the fourth quarter valued at $164,000. Finally, C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. lifted its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 28.9% in the third quarter. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. now owns 3,436 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $178,000 after acquiring an additional 770 shares during the period. 73.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Scotiabank boosted their price target on National Fuel Gas from $67.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th.

National Fuel Gas Stock Down 0.3 %

NYSE NFG opened at $52.94 on Thursday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $51.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $50.84. The company has a market capitalization of $4.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.10 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. National Fuel Gas has a 52 week low of $45.32 and a 52 week high of $55.99.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.46 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $525.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $664.57 million. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 21.58% and a return on equity of 14.81%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 20.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.84 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that National Fuel Gas will post 4.55 earnings per share for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 28th were issued a dividend of $0.495 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $1.98 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.74%. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 41.51%.

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.