State Street Corp Cuts Position in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

State Street Corp reduced its position in shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) by 3.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,861,626 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock after selling 134,683 shares during the quarter. State Street Corp owned about 4.23% of National Fuel Gas worth $236,021,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of NFG. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of National Fuel Gas by 12.6% during the third quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 7,698 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $467,000 after buying an additional 859 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the third quarter valued at $1,277,000. Welch Group LLC purchased a new stake in National Fuel Gas during the second quarter valued at about $526,000. Evergreen Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $718,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 76.1% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 31,790 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $1,927,000 after buying an additional 13,739 shares during the period. 73.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

National Fuel Gas Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NFG traded down $0.85 during trading on Thursday, reaching $60.78. The company had a trading volume of 464,088 shares, compared to its average volume of 517,196. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.04 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.32, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. National Fuel Gas has a 12 month low of $45.32 and a 12 month high of $65.06. The company has a fifty day moving average of $61.57 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.04.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be given a dividend of $0.515 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.39%. National Fuel Gas's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 254.32%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on NFG. Bank of America began coverage on shares of National Fuel Gas in a report on Monday, October 28th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $62.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded National Fuel Gas from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, November 30th. Scotiabank upped their price target on National Fuel Gas from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Argus upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on shares of National Fuel Gas from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, National Fuel Gas currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $69.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at National Fuel Gas

In other news, General Counsel Michael W. Reville sold 1,700 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.77, for a total transaction of $103,309.00. Following the completion of the sale, the general counsel now owns 8,203 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $498,496.31. This represents a 17.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Donna L. Decarolis sold 10,000 shares of National Fuel Gas stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.58, for a total transaction of $625,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 81,519 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,101,459.02. The trade was a 10.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 31,232 shares of company stock worth $1,945,367 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.55% of the company's stock.

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.