National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFGGet Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $65.18 and last traded at $65.00, with a volume of 290683 shares. The stock had previously closed at $63.67.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NFG. Bank of America began coverage on shares of National Fuel Gas in a research note on Monday, October 28th. They set an “underperform” rating and a $62.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com raised shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Argus raised shares of National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, National Fuel Gas presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on NFG

National Fuel Gas Stock Up 1.9 %

The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $61.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $59.95. The firm has a market cap of $5.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.14 and a beta of 0.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.32.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, December 31st. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is 254.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling at National Fuel Gas

In other news, insider Donna L. Decarolis sold 10,000 shares of National Fuel Gas stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.58, for a total transaction of $625,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 81,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,101,459.02. This trade represents a 10.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Justin I. Loweth sold 19,532 shares of National Fuel Gas stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.27, for a total value of $1,216,257.64. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 41,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,605,439.07. This represents a 31.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.55% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its stake in National Fuel Gas by 12.6% in the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 7,698 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $467,000 after purchasing an additional 859 shares in the last quarter. Zacks Investment Management bought a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the third quarter worth about $957,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the third quarter worth about $1,277,000. Vestcor Inc bought a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the third quarter worth about $716,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 76.1% during 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 purchasing an additional 13,739 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

National Fuel Gas Company Profile

(Get Free Report)

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.

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