Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Shares of Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the four brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation. The average twelve-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $45.20.

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott began coverage on shares of Northwest Natural in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $39.00 price target on the stock.

Northwest Natural Stock Performance

NWN stock opened at $36.13 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.90 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $36.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $37.63. Northwest Natural has a fifty-two week low of $34.95 and a fifty-two week high of $48.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The utilities provider reported $1.21 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.31 by ($0.10). Northwest Natural had a return on equity of 7.52% and a net margin of 7.84%. The company had revenue of $355.71 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $368.78 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.36 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Northwest Natural will post 2.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be paid a $0.488 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.95 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.40%. Northwest Natural’s payout ratio is 75.00%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Northwest Natural

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. BlackRock Inc. boosted its position in Northwest Natural by 2.2% during the second quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 6,242,685 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $268,748,000 after purchasing an additional 135,238 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 4,350,387 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $169,404,000 after buying an additional 65,443 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 12.0% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,750,426 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $92,948,000 after buying an additional 188,069 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 23.7% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 910,894 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,760,000 after buying an additional 174,587 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Northwest Natural by 3.7% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 761,482 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,216,000 after buying an additional 26,899 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 75.13% of the company’s stock.

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.