Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Makes New $664,000 Investment in National Fuel Gas Company $NFG

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas Company (NYSE:NFG) during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 8,600 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock, valued at approximately $664,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 30.0% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 159,953 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $12,667,000 after buying an additional 36,913 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in shares of National Fuel Gas during the first quarter worth $247,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 3.9% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 220,730 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $17,480,000 after acquiring an additional 8,304 shares during the period. Focus Partners Wealth raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 79.5% during the first quarter. Focus Partners Wealth now owns 12,729 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,008,000 after acquiring an additional 5,638 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in National Fuel Gas in the 1st quarter valued at $138,000. 73.96% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

National Fuel Gas Trading Up 0.3%

NYSE:NFG opened at $83.18 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $7.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.37. National Fuel Gas Company has a twelve month low of $75.17 and a twelve month high of $97.06. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $80.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $84.47. The company has a quick ratio of 3.07, a current ratio of 3.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The oil and gas producer reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.44 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $537.50 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $564.33 million. National Fuel Gas had a net margin of 26.97% and a return on equity of 19.04%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.64 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that National Fuel Gas Company will post 7.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

National Fuel Gas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 30th were given a $0.555 dividend. This represents a $2.22 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. This is an increase from National Fuel Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.54. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 30th. National Fuel Gas’s payout ratio is 30.83%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NFG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. KeyCorp reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of National Fuel Gas in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings downgraded National Fuel Gas from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded National Fuel Gas from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, National Fuel Gas has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $105.50.

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.