TRUE Private Wealth Advisors Cuts Stock Position in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN)

TRUE Private Wealth Advisors lessened its holdings in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) by 30.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 13,195 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,767 shares during the period. TRUE Private Wealth Advisors’ holdings in Northwest Natural were worth $476,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 1.6% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,421,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $164,572,000 after buying an additional 71,214 shares during the last quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC raised its position in Northwest Natural by 6.0% during the first quarter. Gabelli Funds LLC now owns 475,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $17,680,000 after purchasing an additional 27,000 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 465,504 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $18,127,000 after purchasing an additional 26,540 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 392,514 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $15,284,000 after purchasing an additional 4,011 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 12.2% in the 4th quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 298,760 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,634,000 after purchasing an additional 32,410 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.13% of the company’s stock.

Northwest Natural Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:NWN traded down $0.05 on Wednesday, hitting $37.85. 141,233 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 296,287. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.62 and a beta of 0.57. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $37.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $37.18. Northwest Natural Holding has a 12 month low of $34.82 and a 12 month high of $41.66.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The utilities provider reported ($0.07) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.13) by $0.06. The company had revenue of $211.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $231.99 million. Northwest Natural had a return on equity of 6.76% and a net margin of 7.36%. Northwest Natural’s revenue was down 11.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.03 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.28 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a $0.488 dividend. This represents a $1.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.16%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 31st. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 85.53%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NWN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded Northwest Natural from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Janney Montgomery Scott raised shares of Northwest Natural from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $36.00 to $43.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus increased their price objective on shares of Northwest Natural from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Northwest Natural presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $41.25.

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.