Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) saw a significant decrease in short interest in the month of February. As of February 15th, there was short interest totalling 773,000 shares, a decrease of 13.5% from the January 31st total of 893,700 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 205,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.8 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Northwest Natural from $45.00 to $44.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, November 14th.

Northwest Natural Trading Up 1.3 %

NYSE NWN traded up $0.53 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $41.95. 219,304 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 214,141. Northwest Natural has a 1-year low of $34.82 and a 1-year high of $44.25. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $40.37 and its 200 day simple moving average is $40.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.69 billion, a PE ratio of 19.79 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.72.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $370.90 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $395.05 million. Northwest Natural had a return on equity of 5.89% and a net margin of 6.90%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.21 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Northwest Natural will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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Northwest Natural Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 31st were paid a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.67%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. Northwest Natural's dividend payout ratio is currently 96.55%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO David Hugo Anderson sold 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $39.78, for a total value of $298,350.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 144,298 shares in the company, valued at $5,740,174.44. This represents a 4.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 23,009 shares of company stock worth $936,978. 0.84% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northwest Natural

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in shares of Northwest Natural in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 11,111.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,009 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC raised its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 692.4% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 1,046 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 914 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Northwest Natural in the 3rd quarter valued at $61,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in shares of Northwest Natural in the 3rd quarter valued at $78,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.13% of the company's stock.

Northwest Natural Company 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.