Equity Investment Corp Has $66.73 Million Stock Holdings in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Equity Investment Corp grew its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) by 27.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,242,186 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after acquiring an additional 269,441 shares during the period. Equity Investment Corp owned about 1.35% of National Fuel Gas worth $66,730,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC grew its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. HBK Sorce Advisory LLC now owns 21,518 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,080,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares in the last quarter. Mcintyre Freedman & Flynn Investment Advisers Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 0.5% in the 1st quarter. Mcintyre Freedman & Flynn Investment Advisers Inc. now owns 61,486 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $3,303,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 119.8% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 567 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 309 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 17.1% in the 4th quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 2,145 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $107,000 after buying an additional 314 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 5,399 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $271,000 after buying an additional 331 shares during the period. 73.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at National Fuel Gas

In other National Fuel Gas news, General Counsel Michael W. Reville sold 6,357 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.83, for a total transaction of $348,554.31. Following the sale, the general counsel now directly owns 9,903 shares in the company, valued at approximately $542,981.49. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 1.55% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently commented on NFG shares. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of National Fuel Gas from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday. StockNews.com raised shares of National Fuel Gas from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 20th.

National Fuel Gas Stock Performance

National Fuel Gas stock traded up $1.13 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $56.82. 593,866 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 453,583. The company has a current ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $55.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $52.31. The firm has a market cap of $5.22 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.27 and a beta of 0.62. National Fuel Gas has a fifty-two week low of $45.32 and a fifty-two week high of $57.60.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The oil and gas producer reported $1.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.41 by $0.38. The firm had revenue of $629.94 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $767.33 million. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 23.84% and a return on equity of 15.06%. National Fuel Gas's revenue was down 12.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.54 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that National Fuel Gas will post 5.18 earnings per share for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 28th will be paid a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. This is a positive change from National Fuel Gas's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 28th. National Fuel Gas's payout ratio is presently 40.87%.

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.