Jones Financial Companies Lllp Acquires 494 Shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 72.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,178 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after acquiring an additional 494 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp’s holdings in National Fuel Gas were worth $71,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NFG. Ibex Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the 4th quarter worth about $4,943,000. Barclays PLC raised its position in National Fuel Gas by 243.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 102,672 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $6,223,000 after purchasing an additional 72,802 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in National Fuel Gas by 33.3% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 220,869 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $13,386,000 after purchasing an additional 55,152 shares during the period. Synergy Asset Management LLC raised its position in National Fuel Gas by 86.3% in the 4th quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 92,881 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $5,662,000 after purchasing an additional 43,016 shares during the period. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the 3rd quarter worth about $2,399,000. 73.96% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NFG. Argus raised shares of National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. 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, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, National Fuel Gas presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $74.67.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NFG opened at $77.06 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $6.98 billion, a PE ratio of -550.42 and a beta of 0.57. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $70.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $64.51. National Fuel Gas has a one year low of $51.14 and a one year high of $77.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.33 and a current ratio of 0.39.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that National Fuel Gas will post 6.64 EPS for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is -1,471.43%.

National Fuel Gas 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.