Yousif Capital Management LLC Sells 857 Shares of Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN)

Yousif Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) by 4.3% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 18,979 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 857 shares during the quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Northwest Natural were worth $817,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWN. Avalon Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Northwest Natural during the first quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Belpointe Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 185.7% during the first 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 during the last quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY bought a new stake in shares of Northwest Natural during the second quarter valued at approximately $54,000. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 23.8% during the first quarter. FMR LLC now owns 1,452 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in shares of Northwest Natural by 45.5% during the third 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 during the last quarter. 73.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of Northwest Natural in a research note on Thursday, October 5th. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. Guggenheim cut their price objective on shares of Northwest Natural from $42.00 to $37.00 in a report on Monday, October 9th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Northwest Natural from $50.00 to $46.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 4th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Northwest Natural from $52.00 to $45.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, September 6th. Finally, TheStreet lowered shares of Northwest Natural from a “b-” rating to a “c+” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and three have issued a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Northwest Natural currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $46.75.

Northwest Natural Trading Down 4.0 %

NWN opened at $37.77 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $1.36 billion, a PE ratio of 13.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.61. Northwest Natural Holding has a twelve month low of $36.07 and a twelve month high of $52.39. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $38.94 and its two-hundred day moving average is $41.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.80.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, November 3rd. The utilities provider reported ($0.65) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.67) by $0.02. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 8.49% and a return on equity of 8.47%. The company had revenue of $141.50 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $127.35 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.56) EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 21.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.68 EPS for the current year.

Northwest Natural Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, October 31st will be given a $0.488 dividend. This represents a $1.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.17%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, October 30th. This is an increase from Northwest Natural’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.49. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.91%.

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.