Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) Shares Acquired by Wedge Capital Management L L P NC

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its holdings in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) by 28.4% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 21,608 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,783 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC’s holdings in Northwest Natural were worth $841,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of NWN. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in Northwest Natural by 23.7% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 910,894 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,760,000 after buying an additional 174,587 shares in the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake 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 worth $6,567,000 after acquiring an additional 166,062 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted 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 acquiring an additional 74,776 shares in the last quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Northwest Natural during the 3rd quarter worth about $2,311,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd raised its stake in shares of 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. Institutional investors own 75.13% of the company’s stock.

Northwest Natural Stock Up 0.2 %

NWN opened at $38.66 on Friday. Northwest Natural Holding has a fifty-two week low of $34.95 and a fifty-two week high of $48.37. The business has a 50-day moving average of $36.95 and a 200-day moving average of $37.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.70. The company has a market capitalization of $1.47 billion, a PE ratio of 14.87 and a beta of 0.57.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The utilities provider reported $1.21 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $355.71 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $368.78 million. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 7.84% and a return on equity of 7.52%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.36 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.488 per share. This represents a $1.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.05%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio is 75.00%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on Northwest Natural in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $39.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.20.

Northwest Natural Company 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.