Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) Updates Q2 Earnings Guidance

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) issued an update on its second quarter earnings guidance on Monday morning. The company provided earnings per share guidance of ($0.16)-($0.08) for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of ($0.03). Northwest Natural also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 2.200-2.400 EPS.

Northwest Natural Trading Up 0.4 %

Northwest Natural stock traded up $0.15 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $38.01. 40,213 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 330,755. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.86. Northwest Natural has a fifty-two week low of $34.95 and a fifty-two week high of $47.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.58 and a beta of 0.54. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $37.05 and its 200-day moving average is $37.51.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last released its earnings results on Monday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.82 by ($0.13). The business had revenue of $433.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.81 million. Northwest Natural had a net margin of 7.84% and a return on equity of 7.52%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.01 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Northwest Natural will post 2.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Northwest Natural Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be issued a dividend of $0.488 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.95 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.14%. Northwest Natural’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 75.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on NWN shares. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on shares of Northwest Natural in a research note on Wednesday, January 31st. They issued a neutral rating and a $39.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus raised their target price on shares of Northwest Natural from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $41.40.

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.