Balyasny Asset Management L.P. Sells 2,427 Shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Balyasny Asset Management L.P. lowered its stake in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 37.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,001 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 2,427 shares during the quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P.’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $243,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 1,221 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $76,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 82.9% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 481 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 218 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 49.5% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 722 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. Mariner LLC lifted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 20,291 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,231,000 after acquiring an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Evergreen Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 13,765 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $842,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on NFG shares. StockNews.com raised National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.67.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

National Fuel Gas stock opened at $81.17 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $78.13 and a 200-day moving average of $70.11. National Fuel Gas has a 1 year low of $53.03 and a 1 year high of $83.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.39 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The company has a market capitalization of $7.33 billion, a P/E ratio of -579.74 and a beta of 0.61.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.39 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $729.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $770.81 million. National Fuel Gas had a negative net margin of 0.53% and a positive return on equity of 15.96%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.79 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 earnings per share for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 31st were given a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.54%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 31st. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is presently 479.07%.

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.