Foster & Motley Inc. Purchases 8,307 Shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Foster & Motley Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 27.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 38,687 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after buying an additional 8,307 shares during the period. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $2,348,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in National Fuel Gas by 3.0% during the second quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 11,152 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $617,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its position in National Fuel Gas by 4.0% during the second quarter. Creative Planning now owns 31,917 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,730,000 after acquiring an additional 1,228 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas during the second quarter worth approximately $992,000. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 225.7% during the third quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 13,303 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $806,000 after purchasing an additional 9,219 shares during the period. Finally, Cullen Investment Group LTD. increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 0.7% during the third quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 30,021 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,820,000 after purchasing an additional 202 shares during the period. 73.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. StockNews.com cut shares of National Fuel Gas from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday. Bank of America started coverage on shares of National Fuel Gas in a research note on Monday, October 28th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $62.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Argus raised shares of National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, National Fuel Gas currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at National Fuel Gas

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

National Fuel Gas Trading Up 2.7 %

NFG opened at $70.29 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $63.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $61.10. The company has a market cap of $6.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 86.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 0.64. National Fuel Gas has a 1-year low of $45.32 and a 1-year high of $73.13.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.22. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 3.99% and a return on equity of 14.88%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 earnings per share. Analysts predict that National Fuel Gas will post 6.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were paid a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is -1,471.43%.

National Fuel Gas Company Profile

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.