New York State Common Retirement Fund Acquires 42,327 Shares of Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN)

New York State Common Retirement Fund increased its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) by 292.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 56,805 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 42,327 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned approximately 0.15% of Northwest Natural worth $2,212,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NWN. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in Northwest Natural by 23.7% during the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 910,894 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,760,000 after buying an additional 174,587 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its position in Northwest Natural by 2,752.6% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 172,095 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,567,000 after acquiring an additional 166,062 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Northwest Natural by 26.0% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 362,232 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,823,000 after purchasing an additional 74,776 shares during the period. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. bought a new position in Northwest Natural during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,311,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its holdings in Northwest Natural by 103.0% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 97,001 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,702,000 after purchasing an additional 49,225 shares in the last quarter. 75.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Northwest Natural Price Performance

NYSE:NWN opened at $38.37 on Wednesday. Northwest Natural Holding has a 52-week low of $34.95 and a 52-week high of $47.29. The company has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.76 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $37.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $37.50.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.69 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.82 by ($0.13). The company had revenue of $433.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.81 million. Northwest Natural had a return on equity of 7.52% and a net margin of 7.84%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.01 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.488 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.09%. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on NWN shares. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Northwest Natural from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on Northwest Natural in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $39.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.40.

Northwest Natural Profile

Northwest Natural Holding Company, through its subsidiary, Northwest Natural Gas Company, provides regulated natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the United States. The company operates a mist gas storage facility contracted to other utilities, third-party marketers, and electric generators; offers natural gas asset management services; and operates an appliance retail center.