Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN – Free Report) by 7.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 518 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Northwest Natural were worth $317,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Avalon Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Northwest Natural in the 1st quarter valued at about $32,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 185.7% in the 1st quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 820 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 533 shares in the last quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY bought a new stake in shares of Northwest Natural in the 2nd quarter valued at about $54,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 23.8% in the 1st quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,452 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 45.5% in the 3rd quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 1,781 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $78,000 after purchasing an additional 557 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.88% of the company’s stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
Several research analysts recently commented on NWN shares. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of Northwest Natural from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 4th. Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of Northwest Natural from $42.00 to $37.00 in a research note on Monday, October 9th. StockNews.com started coverage on shares of Northwest Natural in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “sell” rating for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Northwest Natural from $52.00 to $45.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, September 6th. Finally, TheStreet lowered shares of Northwest Natural from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have given a hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Northwest Natural has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $46.75.
Northwest Natural Trading Up 2.0 %
Shares of Northwest Natural stock opened at $39.34 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. Northwest Natural Holding has a 12-month low of $36.07 and a 12-month high of $52.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.85, a PEG ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.61. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $38.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.01.
Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN – Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 3rd. The utilities provider reported ($0.65) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.67) by $0.02. The business had revenue of $141.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $127.35 million. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 8.49% and a return on equity of 8.47%. Northwest Natural’s revenue for the quarter was up 21.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.56) EPS. Analysts predict that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.68 EPS for the current year.
Northwest Natural Increases Dividend
The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 31st will be issued a $0.488 dividend. This is an increase from Northwest Natural’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. This represents a $1.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.96%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 30th. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio is 68.66%.
About Northwest Natural
Northwest Natural Holding Company, through its subsidiary, Northwest Natural Gas Company, provides regulated natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial, industrial, and transportation customers in Oregon and Southwest Washington. The company operates Mist gas storage facility contracted to other utilities and third-party marketers; offers natural gas asset management services; and operates an appliance retail center.
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