Sanctuary Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 18,429 National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Sanctuary Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 18,429 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $992,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of National Fuel Gas in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,748,000. Equity Investment Corp lifted its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 27.7% during the 1st quarter. Equity Investment Corp now owns 1,242,186 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $66,730,000 after buying an additional 269,441 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in National Fuel Gas by 478.8% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 86,567 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $4,650,000 after acquiring an additional 71,612 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 12.6% in the 1st quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 130,375 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $7,004,000 after acquiring an additional 14,604 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in National Fuel Gas by 0.8% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 13,313,064 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $715,178,000 after acquiring an additional 104,587 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.96% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on NFG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $64.00 to $62.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on National Fuel Gas from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, StockNews.com raised National Fuel Gas from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday.

Insider Activity

In related news, General Counsel Michael W. Reville sold 1,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.77, for a total value of $103,309.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel now directly owns 8,203 shares in the company, valued at approximately $498,496.31. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 1.55% of the company's stock.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

NFG traded up $0.50 during trading on Friday, reaching $60.36. The company's stock had a trading volume of 267,263 shares, compared to its average volume of 531,656. The company has a market cap of $5.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.50 and a beta of 0.62. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.63 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $56.77. National Fuel Gas has a 1 year low of $45.32 and a 1 year high of $61.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The oil and gas producer reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.96 by $0.03. National Fuel Gas had a return on equity of 14.80% and a net margin of 16.42%. The company had revenue of $417.40 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $540.62 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.01 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that National Fuel Gas will post 5.05 EPS for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 30th will be issued a $0.515 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 30th. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.41%. National Fuel Gas's payout ratio is 59.71%.

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.