Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) Announces Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.08 EPS

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) posted its earnings results on Tuesday. The utilities provider reported ($0.71) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.79) by $0.08, Briefing.com reports. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 7.18% and a return on equity of 6.31%. The company had revenue of $136.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $132.47 million. During the same period last year, the business posted ($0.65) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Northwest Natural updated its FY24 guidance to $2.20-2.40 EPS.

Northwest Natural Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NWN traded up $0.43 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $42.06. 12,944 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 278,141. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.11 and a beta of 0.58. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $39.93 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.97. Northwest Natural has a 52 week low of $34.82 and a 52 week high of $42.56.

Northwest Natural Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 31st will be given a dividend of $0.49 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. This is an increase from Northwest Natural’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.66%. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 89.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NWN has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Janney Montgomery Scott raised Northwest Natural from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $36.00 to $43.00 in a research note on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Northwest Natural from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th.

About Northwest Natural

Northwest Natural Holding Company, through its subsidiary, Northwest Natural Gas Company, provides regulated natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the United States. The company operates a mist gas storage facility contracted to other utilities, third-party marketers, and electric generators; offers natural gas asset management services; and operates an appliance retail center.