Bernzott Capital Advisors Sells 11,950 Shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG)

Bernzott Capital Advisors lowered its stake in shares of National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) by 8.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 123,225 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock after selling 11,950 shares during the period. National Fuel Gas makes up 3.7% of Bernzott Capital Advisors’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 3rd biggest holding. Bernzott Capital Advisors owned about 0.14% of National Fuel Gas worth $7,477,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NFG. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 44.2% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,498,205 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $151,416,000 after acquiring an additional 765,236 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 159.5% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 880,434 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $47,711,000 after acquiring an additional 541,176 shares during the last quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 262.5% in the 2nd quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 318,078 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $17,237,000 after acquiring an additional 230,332 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 261.4% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 173,283 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $9,390,000 after acquiring an additional 125,336 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of National Fuel Gas by 11.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 930,775 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $50,441,000 after acquiring an additional 93,780 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Justin I. Loweth sold 19,532 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.27, for a total transaction of $1,216,257.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 41,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,605,439.07. This represents a 31.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Donna L. Decarolis sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.58, for a total transaction of $625,800.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 81,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,101,459.02. This represents a 10.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 1.55% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NFG. StockNews.com upgraded shares of National Fuel Gas from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday. Argus raised shares of National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of National Fuel Gas from $65.00 to $64.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of National Fuel Gas in a research report on Monday, October 28th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $62.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

National Fuel Gas Trading Up 2.3 %

Shares of NFG stock opened at $67.90 on Friday. National Fuel Gas has a 52-week low of $45.32 and a 52-week high of $67.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.25 and a current ratio of 0.32. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $60.13. The company has a market capitalization of $6.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 83.82 and a beta of 0.64.

National Fuel Gas Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 31st were given a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, December 31st. National Fuel Gas’s dividend payout ratio is currently 254.32%.

National Fuel Gas Company Profile

National Fuel Gas Company operates as a diversified energy company. It operates through four segments: Exploration and Production, Pipeline and Storage, Gathering, and Utility. The Exploration and Production segment explores for, develops, and produces natural gas and oil. The Pipeline and Storage segment provides interstate natural gas transportation services through an integrated gas pipeline system in Pennsylvania and New York; and owns and operates underground natural gas storage fields.