National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Reaches New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $75.37 and last traded at $75.40, with a volume of 20727 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $75.20.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NFG has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on National Fuel Gas from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. StockNews.com raised shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Argus raised National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, National Fuel Gas currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $6.78 billion, a P/E ratio of -534.88 and a beta of 0.64. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $68.45 and a 200-day moving average of $63.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.66 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.22. National Fuel Gas had a negative net margin of 0.53% and a positive return on equity of 15.96%. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.46 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 EPS for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, December 31st were issued a dividend of $0.515 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.75%. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is presently -1,471.43%.

Insider Activity at National Fuel Gas

In other National Fuel Gas news, insider Donna L. Decarolis sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.58, for a total transaction of $625,800.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 81,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,101,459.02. This represents a 10.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.41% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On National Fuel Gas

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NFG. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,934,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 359,845 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $21,835,000 after purchasing an additional 3,928 shares during the last quarter. Novem Group bought a new position in National Fuel Gas during the fourth quarter worth $289,000. Finally, Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC increased its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 106.8% in the fourth quarter. Focus Partners Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 7,472 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $453,000 after purchasing an additional 3,859 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

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.