National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $106.00.

NFG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Scotiabank set a $101.00 price objective on National Fuel Gas in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Zacks Research raised National Fuel Gas from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Finally, KeyCorp initiated coverage on National Fuel Gas in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $110.00 price objective on the stock.

National Fuel Gas Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:NFG opened at $79.51 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $91.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $85.29. National Fuel Gas has a 12-month low of $77.22 and a 12-month high of $97.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 29th. The oil and gas producer reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.85 by ($0.14). National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 27.48% and a return on equity of 20.62%. The company had revenue of $858.37 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $856.57 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.39 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 17.6% compared to the same quarter last year. National Fuel Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.450-7.750 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that National Fuel Gas will post 7.72 earnings per share for the current year.

National Fuel Gas Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 31st were paid a dividend of $0.535 per share. This represents a $2.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 31st. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.96%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NFG. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. grew its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 458.0% during the first quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 279 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Fairscale Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. HM Payson & Co. bought a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas by 88.5% in the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 360 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 169 shares during the last quarter. 73.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About National Fuel Gas

National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE: NFG) is a diversified energy company engaged primarily in the production, gathering, transmission, distribution and marketing of natural gas. The company operates through four principal segments: Exploration & Production, Pipeline & Storage, Utilities, and Energy Marketing. Its integrated asset base spans upstream development in the Appalachian Basin, regional pipeline networks, underground storage facilities, and regulated utility distribution systems.

In its Exploration & Production segment, National Fuel Gas focuses on developing natural gas reserves in the Marcellus and Utica shales, leveraging modern drilling and completion techniques.