Northwest Natural Gas Company (NWN) – What Are Analysts Thinking About This Stock?

Shares of Northwest Natural Gas Company (NYSE:NWN) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the ten research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, five have given a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $55.43.

NWN has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Northwest Natural Gas from $49.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Huntington assumed coverage on Northwest Natural Gas in a report on Monday, September 14th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $58.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley downgraded Northwest Natural Gas to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. Mizuho started coverage on Northwest Natural Gas in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $51.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Northwest Natural Gas from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, October 16th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Northwest Natural Gas news, Director David Anderson sold 1,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, October 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.71, for a total value of $73,065.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 47,759 shares in the company, valued at $2,326,340.89. This represents a 3.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 4,500 shares of company stock valued at $221,400. Corporate insiders own 0.55% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northwest Natural Gas

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 26,501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,237,000 after acquiring an additional 817 shares during the last quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp grew its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural Gas by 14.4% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 35,286 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,647,000 after purchasing an additional 4,429 shares in the last quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Northwest Natural Gas by 95.4% in the third quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 25,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,167,000 after purchasing an additional 12,205 shares during the last quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC increased its position in Northwest Natural Gas by 42.2% in the third quarter. Penn Capital Management Company LLC now owns 61,701 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,880,000 after purchasing an additional 18,314 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Axiom Investment Management LLC raised its stake in Northwest Natural Gas by 28.3% during the third quarter. Axiom Investment Management LLC now owns 1,230 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 271 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 75.13% of the company’s stock.

Northwest Natural Gas Stock Performance

NWN opened at $51.73 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $2.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.13 and a beta of 0.40. Northwest Natural Gas has a 1-year low of $45.69 and a 1-year high of $55.99. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $50.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported ($0.71) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.88) by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $177.97 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $176.40 million. Northwest Natural Gas had a net margin of 9.65% and a return on equity of 8.23%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.73) earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Northwest Natural Gas will post 3.10 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Gas Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Friday, October 30th will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. This is a boost from Northwest Natural Gas’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.4925. Northwest Natural Gas’s payout ratio is presently 66.67%.

Northwest Natural Gas News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Northwest Natural Gas this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Northwest Natural raised its 2026 EPS guidance to $3.10–$3.20, citing a SiEnergy rate settlement and cost controls. The higher outlook may support investor confidence in earnings growth. Article: Northwest Natural raises 2026 EPS guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Third-quarter results also exceeded estimates: the net loss was $0.71 per share versus analysts’ expected $0.88 loss, while revenue of $177.97 million topped forecasts and grew 8% year over year. Article: Northwest Natural Q3 results
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo raised its price target from $49 to $50 but maintained an “equal weight” rating. The new target is still below the prevailing share price, suggesting limited upside in the firm’s view and potentially weighing on sentiment. Wells Fargo ratings

Northwest Natural Gas Company Profile

Northwest Natural Gas Company, operating as NW Natural and a subsidiary of Northwest Natural Holding Company, is an energy and utility company headquartered in Portland, Oregon. Its principal business is the distribution of natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

NW Natural serves communities primarily in Oregon and southwest Washington through a regulated natural gas distribution system. The company also provides related services, including natural gas storage and programs focused on renewable natural gas and other lower-carbon energy solutions.

The company traces its history to 1859 and has expanded beyond its traditional natural gas operations through investments in water and wastewater utilities.