Arizona State Retirement System Purchases 273 Shares of Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN)

Arizona State Retirement System raised its position in Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) by 2.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,223 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 273 shares during the quarter. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in Northwest Natural were worth $444,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of NWN. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC increased its holdings in Northwest Natural by 11,111.1% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 1,009 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 1,000 shares during the period. LRI Investments LLC increased its holdings in Northwest Natural by 692.4% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 1,046 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 914 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Northwest Natural in the 3rd quarter valued at about $61,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Northwest Natural in the 3rd quarter valued at about $78,000. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its holdings in Northwest Natural by 74.1% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,054 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $81,000 after buying an additional 874 shares during the period. 75.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Northwest Natural Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of Northwest Natural stock opened at $41.83 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.68 billion, a PE ratio of 19.73 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $40.56 and its 200 day moving average is $40.55. Northwest Natural Holding has a 1 year low of $34.82 and a 1 year high of $44.25.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.42 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $370.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $395.05 million. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 6.90% and a return on equity of 5.89%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.21 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Northwest Natural Holding will post 2.33 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Northwest Natural Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a dividend of $0.49 per share. This represents a $1.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.69%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 31st. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 96.55%.

Insider Activity at Northwest Natural

In related news, CEO David Hugo Anderson sold 7,500 shares of Northwest Natural stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.33, for a total transaction of $309,975.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 137,742 shares in the company, valued at $5,692,876.86. This trade represents a 5.16 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In the last three months, insiders have sold 23,009 shares of company stock valued at $936,978. 0.84% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Northwest Natural Profile

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.