Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) Releases FY24 Earnings Guidance

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) updated its FY24 earnings guidance on Monday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of $2.20-2.40 for the period, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.29. Northwest Natural also updated its FY 2024 guidance to 2.200-2.400 EPS.

Northwest Natural Price Performance

NYSE NWN traded up $0.09 on Wednesday, hitting $38.46. 327,471 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 333,082. Northwest Natural has a 1-year low of $34.95 and a 1-year high of $47.29. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $37.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $37.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. The company has a market cap of $1.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.79 and a beta of 0.54.

Northwest Natural (NYSE:NWN) last announced 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). Northwest Natural had a return on equity of 7.52% and a net margin of 7.84%. The company had revenue of $433.50 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $447.81 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.01 earnings per share. Northwest Natural’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Northwest Natural will post 2.27 EPS for the current year.

Northwest Natural Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.488 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 29th. This represents a $1.95 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.08%. Northwest Natural’s payout ratio is currently 75.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on Northwest Natural in a research report on Wednesday, January 31st. They issued a neutral rating and a $39.00 price objective for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Northwest Natural from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research report 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average target price 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.