Vestcor Inc Acquires Shares of 11,807 National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Vestcor Inc acquired a new position in National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 11,807 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock, valued at approximately $716,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NFG. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 44.2% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,498,205 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $151,416,000 after acquiring an additional 765,236 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 159.5% during the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 880,434 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $47,711,000 after acquiring an additional 541,176 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 194.3% in the second quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 378,588 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock worth $20,516,000 after acquiring an additional 249,967 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its stake in National Fuel Gas by 262.5% during the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 318,078 shares of the oil and gas producer's stock valued at $17,237,000 after purchasing an additional 230,332 shares during the period. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new position in National Fuel Gas in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $10,741,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.96% of the company's stock.

National Fuel Gas Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NFG stock traded up $0.59 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $61.39. 541,053 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 517,294. National Fuel Gas has a 52-week low of $45.32 and a 52-week high of $65.06. The stock has a market cap of $5.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 75.78 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.25. The stock's fifty day moving average is $61.58 and its two-hundred day moving average is $59.08.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st will be issued a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 31st. National Fuel Gas's dividend payout ratio is currently 254.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

Insider Activity

In other National Fuel Gas news, General Counsel Michael W. Reville sold 1,700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.77, for a total transaction of $103,309.00. Following the sale, the general counsel now owns 8,203 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $498,496.31. The trade was a 17.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Justin I. Loweth sold 19,532 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.27, for a total transaction of $1,216,257.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 41,841 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,605,439.07. This represents a 31.83 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 31,232 shares of company stock worth $1,945,367. Insiders own 1.55% of the company's stock.

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.