Russell Investments Group Ltd. Purchases 24,853 Shares of Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. $NGS

Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:NGS) by 17.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 163,473 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 24,853 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 1.31% of Natural Gas Services Group worth $3,591,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NGS. HighTower Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Natural Gas Services Group in the first quarter worth approximately $254,000. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Natural Gas Services Group in the first quarter worth $497,000. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Natural Gas Services Group by 370.4% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 136,748 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $3,004,000 after purchasing an additional 107,679 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Natural Gas Services Group during the first quarter worth $251,000. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Natural Gas Services Group during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Institutional investors own 65.62% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Jean K. Holley bought 4,048 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $24.49 per share, with a total value of $99,135.52. Following the transaction, the director owned 4,048 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $99,135.52. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Stephen Charles Taylor sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $26.25, for a total value of $525,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 413,334 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,850,017.50. The trade was a 4.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 5.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Natural Gas Services Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Natural Gas Services Group from $32.00 to $33.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and one has given a Buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Strong Buy” and an average target price of $32.50.

Natural Gas Services Group Stock Up 3.2%

NYSE:NGS opened at $26.7090 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 1.97 and a quick ratio of 1.23. Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.73 and a 1-year high of $29.74. The company has a 50-day moving average of $25.14 and a 200 day moving average of $23.49. The firm has a market cap of $334.93 million, a PE ratio of 18.81 and a beta of 0.66.

Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 11th. The oil and gas company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.09. Natural Gas Services Group had a net margin of 10.92% and a return on equity of 7.21%. The business had revenue of $41.38 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $41.87 million. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. will post 1.42 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Natural Gas Services Group announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Monday, August 11th that permits the company to buyback $6.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the oil and gas company to purchase up to 1.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Natural Gas Services Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, August 8th were paid a $0.10 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 8th. This represents a $0.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.5%. Natural Gas Services Group’s payout ratio is 28.17%.

About Natural Gas Services Group

Natural Gas Services Group, Inc provides natural gas compression equipment and services to the energy industry in the United States. It engineers and fabricates, operates, rents, and maintains natural gas compressors for oil and natural gas production and plant facilities. It also designs, fabricates, and assembles compressor units for rental or sale; and designs, manufactures, and sells a line of reciprocating natural gas compressor frames, cylinders, and parts.