Northwest Natural Holding Plans Quarterly Dividend of $0.49 (NYSE:NWN)

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

Northwest Natural has increased its dividend by an average of 0.5% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 69 consecutive years. Northwest Natural has a dividend payout ratio of 67.5% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research 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 Price Performance

NYSE NWN opened at $38.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.86. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $36.99 and its 200-day moving average price is $37.58. Northwest Natural has a 52-week low of $34.95 and a 52-week high of $48.37. The company has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a PE ratio of 14.74 and a beta of 0.57.

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 analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.31 by ($0.10). Northwest Natural had a net margin of 7.84% and a return on equity of 7.52%. The business had revenue of $355.71 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $368.78 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.36 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Northwest Natural will post 2.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Janney Montgomery Scott began 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have assigned a hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company 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.