Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN) have earned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the six ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $55.25.

Several brokerages recently weighed in on NWN. Freedom Capital raised shares of Northwest Natural Gas from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of Northwest Natural Gas from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $50.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Northwest Natural Gas in a research report on Friday, May 29th.

Northwest Natural Gas Trading Up 1.2%

Shares of NYSE NWN opened at $51.03 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.15 billion, a PE ratio of 17.01 and a beta of 0.43. Northwest Natural Gas has a twelve month low of $40.09 and a twelve month high of $55.99. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $50.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $50.85.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.08) by $0.09. Northwest Natural Gas had a return on equity of 8.33% and a net margin of 9.75%.The firm had revenue of $243.55 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $271.87 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.01 EPS. Northwest Natural Gas’s revenue was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. Northwest Natural Gas has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.950-3.150 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Northwest Natural Gas will post 3.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Northwest Natural Gas Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 31st were given a $0.4925 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 31st. This represents a $1.97 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Northwest Natural Gas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 65.67%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director David Hugo Anderson sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.86, for a total value of $76,290.00. Following the sale, the director owned 50,759 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,581,602.74. This represents a 2.87% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.55% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northwest Natural Gas

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NWN. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 77.4% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 807 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 352 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Northwest Natural Gas by 104.3% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 711 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Northwest Natural Gas by 197.5% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 723 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 480 shares during the period. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in Northwest Natural Gas during the fourth quarter worth about $41,000. Finally, Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new stake in Northwest Natural Gas in the 2nd quarter worth about $45,000. 75.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Northwest Natural Gas

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.