Short Interest in National Grid Transco, PLC (NYSE:NGG) Rises By 58.9%

National Grid Transco, PLC (NYSE:NGG) saw a large increase in short interest in May. As of May 29th, there was short interest totaling 2,312,476 shares, an increase of 58.9% from the May 14th total of 1,455,548 shares. Approximately 0.2% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,379,311 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.7 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NGG. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new stake in National Grid Transco in the 1st quarter worth approximately $916,000. Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of National Grid Transco by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,251 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $360,000 after buying an additional 328 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC boosted its stake in shares of National Grid Transco by 245.7% in the 1st quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 1,203 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $102,000 after buying an additional 855 shares during the last quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA boosted its stake in shares of National Grid Transco by 3.1% in the 1st quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 8,833 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $747,000 after buying an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Western Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of National Grid Transco in the first quarter worth $63,000. Institutional investors own 4.68% of the company’s stock.

National Grid Transco Price Performance

NYSE NGG traded up $0.87 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $82.44. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 724,037 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,182,386. National Grid Transco has a 12 month low of $67.51 and a 12 month high of $94.64. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $85.50 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $84.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

National Grid Transco Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 23rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 29th will be paid a $2.1738 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 29th. This represents a dividend yield of 533.0%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on NGG. UBS Group restated a “sell” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a research note on Monday, March 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft downgraded shares of National Grid Transco from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, June 8th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of National Grid Transco in a research report on Friday, May 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $85.50.

National Grid Transco Company Profile

National Grid Transco (NYSE: NGG) is a utility company focused on the transmission and distribution of electricity and natural gas. The company builds, owns, operates and maintains large-scale energy infrastructure, including high-voltage electricity transmission lines, electricity distribution networks and high-pressure gas pipelines. Its core activities center on providing safe, reliable delivery of energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers while meeting regulatory requirements across its service territories.

Services provided by National Grid Transco encompass network operation and maintenance, system balancing and control, metering and connections, and capital investment in grid modernization and reliability projects.