Northwest Natural Holding (NWN) To Go Ex-Dividend on April 29th

Northwest Natural Holding (NYSE:NWN) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 11th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be paid a dividend of 0.488 per share by the utilities provider on Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $1.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th.

Northwest Natural has raised its dividend by an average of 0.5% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 69 consecutive years. Northwest Natural has a payout ratio of 67.5% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Northwest Natural to earn $2.86 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.95 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 68.2%.

Northwest Natural Stock Performance

Shares of NWN stock opened at $38.33 on Friday. 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 has a 52 week low of $34.95 and a 52 week high of $48.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.46 billion, a PE ratio of 14.74 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $36.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $37.59.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 23rd. The utilities provider reported $1.21 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.31 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $355.71 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $368.78 million. Northwest Natural had a return on equity of 7.52% and a net margin of 7.84%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.36 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Northwest Natural will post 2.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on shares of Northwest Natural in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. They set a “neutral” rating and a $39.00 price objective for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.20.

Northwest Natural Company 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.