Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) Sets New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $41.34 and last traded at $40.85, with a volume of 101711 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $39.10.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

Northwest Natural Stock Up 4.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.17, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.73. The company has a market capitalization of $1.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.78 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a 50 day moving average of $39.88 and a 200-day moving average of $38.49.

Northwest Natural Increases Dividend

The company 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. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.79%. This is a boost from Northwest Natural’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, October 31st. Northwest Natural’s payout ratio is presently 89.91%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Northwest Natural

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL boosted its holdings in Northwest Natural by 113.2% in the 1st quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 235,400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,762,000 after buying an additional 125,000 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 406.0% during the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 144,198 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,207,000 after purchasing an additional 115,698 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 1.6% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,421,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $164,572,000 after purchasing an additional 71,214 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB bought a new position in shares of Northwest Natural during the first quarter valued at approximately $2,619,000. Finally, Brandes Investment Partners LP boosted its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 1,040.1% during the second quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP now owns 68,977 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,467,000 after purchasing an additional 62,927 shares in the last quarter. 75.13% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.