Short Interest in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) Expands By 14.9%

Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 893,700 shares, an increase of 14.9% from the January 15th total of 777,800 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 215,300 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 4.2 days.

Northwest Natural Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE NWN traded down $0.38 on Monday, hitting $40.68. The company had a trading volume of 117,268 shares, compared to its average volume of 210,423. Northwest Natural has a 12-month low of $34.82 and a 12-month high of $44.25. The business has a 50 day moving average of $40.08 and a two-hundred day moving average of $40.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.19 and a beta of 0.62.

Northwest Natural Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a $0.49 dividend. This represents a $1.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.82%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio is currently 92.45%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Northwest Natural from $45.00 to $44.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 14th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Northwest Natural

In other Northwest Natural news, CEO David Hugo Anderson sold 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.33, for a total transaction of $309,975.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 137,742 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,692,876.86. The trade was a 5.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.84% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NWN. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in Northwest Natural in the third quarter valued at about $34,000. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its holdings in Northwest Natural by 11,111.1% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,009 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Northwest Natural by 692.4% during the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 1,046 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 914 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Northwest Natural during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $61,000. Finally, Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Northwest Natural during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $78,000. Hedge funds and other 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.