National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) Upgraded at StockNews.com

National Fuel Gas (NYSE:NFG) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report issued on Monday.

NFG has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Bank of America began coverage on National Fuel Gas in a research note on Monday, October 28th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $62.00 target price on the stock. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on National Fuel Gas from $80.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on 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, Argus upgraded National Fuel Gas to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $69.00.

National Fuel Gas Stock Down 0.8 %

National Fuel Gas stock traded down $0.52 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $60.85. 434,670 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 516,953. National Fuel Gas has a 52-week low of $45.32 and a 52-week high of $65.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.25, a current ratio of 0.32 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $61.59 and its 200-day moving average price is $59.17. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.12 and a beta of 0.63.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other National Fuel Gas news, insider Justin I. Loweth sold 19,532 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider now owns 41,841 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,605,439.07. The trade was a 31.83 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Donna L. Decarolis sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.58, for a total value of $625,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 81,519 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,101,459.02. The trade was a 10.93 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 31,232 shares of company stock valued at $1,945,367 over the last ninety days. 1.55% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of National Fuel Gas

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. MQS Management LLC grew its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. MQS Management LLC now owns 8,631 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $523,000 after buying an additional 166 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in National Fuel Gas by 38.6% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 696 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares in the last quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. increased its holdings in National Fuel Gas by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 30,021 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,820,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the period. Financial Advocates Investment Management lifted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 6.2% in the 2nd quarter. Financial Advocates Investment Management now owns 4,182 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 243 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hancock Whitney Corp lifted its stake in National Fuel Gas by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hancock Whitney Corp now owns 21,363 shares of the oil and gas producer’s stock worth $1,295,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.96% of the company’s stock.

About National Fuel Gas

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.