Raymond James Reiterates “Strong-Buy” Rating for Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS)

Raymond James reissued their strong-buy rating on shares of Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS) in a report released on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Raymond James currently has a $32.00 price objective on the oil and gas company’s stock, down from their prior price objective of $33.00.

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Natural Gas Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday.

Natural Gas Services Group Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of Natural Gas Services Group stock opened at $21.69 on Wednesday. Natural Gas Services Group has a 12-month low of $16.70 and a 12-month high of $29.74. The stock has a market capitalization of $270.91 million, a P/E ratio of 16.95 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 1.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $25.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $23.89.

Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS) last posted its earnings results on Monday, March 17th. The oil and gas company reported $0.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $40.66 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $40.84 million. Natural Gas Services Group had a net margin of 10.55% and a return on equity of 6.60%. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.14 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Natural Gas Services Group will post 1.42 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Natural Gas Services Group

In other Natural Gas Services Group news, Director Stephen Charles Taylor sold 19,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.80, for a total value of $558,720.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 438,387 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,625,545.60. The trade was a 4.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 7.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. MetLife Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Natural Gas Services Group by 129.1% during the 3rd quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 6,325 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $121,000 after acquiring an additional 3,564 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Natural Gas Services Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $128,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its stake in shares of Natural Gas Services Group by 31.5% during the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 6,022 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $161,000 after purchasing an additional 1,443 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its holdings in shares of Natural Gas Services Group by 54.7% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 8,647 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $165,000 after purchasing an additional 3,056 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FCA Corp TX bought a new position in Natural Gas Services Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $188,000. 65.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Natural Gas Services Group Company Profile

Natural Gas Services Group, Inc provides natural gas compression equipment and services to the energy industry in the United States. It engineers and fabricates, operates, rents, and maintains natural gas compressors for oil and natural gas production and plant facilities. It also designs, fabricates, and assembles compressor units for rental or sale; and designs, manufactures, and sells a line of reciprocating natural gas compressor frames, cylinders, and parts.