Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. Sells 203,259 Shares of Northwest Natural Gas Company $NWN

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lessened its stake in Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN) by 14.6% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,189,201 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 203,259 shares during the quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.’s holdings in Northwest Natural Gas were worth $63,289,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Northwest Natural Gas during the fourth quarter valued at $26,885,000. M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in Northwest Natural Gas by 6,616.5% in the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 455,579 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $21,294,000 after purchasing an additional 448,796 shares in the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in Northwest Natural Gas by 74.2% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 587,016 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,437,000 after purchasing an additional 250,025 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 3,319.6% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 211,536 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $9,887,000 after purchasing an additional 205,350 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nuveen LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 224.3% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen LLC now owns 286,388 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $13,386,000 after purchasing an additional 198,074 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.13% of the company’s stock.

Northwest Natural Gas Price Performance

Northwest Natural Gas stock opened at $49.09 on Monday. Northwest Natural Gas Company has a 52-week low of $39.29 and a 52-week high of $55.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $50.94 and its 200 day moving average is $49.80. The company has a market cap of $2.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.76 and a beta of 0.43.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $2.33 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.40 by ($0.07). Northwest Natural Gas had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 9.56%.The business had revenue of $490.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $538.57 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.28 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Northwest Natural Gas Company will post 3.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Gas Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th were issued a $0.4925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $1.97 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. Northwest Natural Gas’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.24%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on NWN shares. Freedom Capital upgraded Northwest Natural Gas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Northwest Natural Gas in a research report on Monday, May 11th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Northwest Natural Gas in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They set a “hold” rating and a $58.00 price target for the company. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Northwest Natural Gas from $52.00 to $58.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research note on Friday, May 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northwest Natural Gas presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $55.25.

Northwest Natural Gas Company Profile

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE: NWN), commonly known as NW Natural, is a publicly traded energy utility primarily engaged in the distribution of natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, the company operates an extensive pipeline network spanning thousands of miles across Oregon and southwest Washington. Its core business activities include gas procurement, system operation and maintenance, safety inspections and customer service support.

Dating back to the mid-19th century, Northwest Natural traces its origins to the Portland Gas Light Company, which first illuminated Portland streets with manufactured gas in 1859.