Squarepoint Ops LLC Buys 38,341 Shares of Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. $NGS

Squarepoint Ops LLC increased its stake in Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. (NYSE:NGS — Free Report) by 103.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 75,284 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock after buying an additional 38,341 shares during the quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC owned approximately 0.60% of Natural Gas Services Group worth $1,943,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Victory Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Natural Gas Services Group during the first quarter worth $25,000. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its position in shares of Natural Gas Services Group by 105.5% in the 2nd quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,424 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 731 shares during the period. State of Wyoming increased its stake in shares of Natural Gas Services Group by 116.0% during the 1st quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 4,427 shares of the oil and gas company’s stock worth $97,000 after purchasing an additional 2,377 shares during the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC bought a new stake in shares of Natural Gas Services Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $115,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC bought a new stake in shares of Natural Gas Services Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $210,000. 65.62% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Natural Gas Services Group Stock Up 0.1%

Natural Gas Services Group stock opened at $31.24 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $28.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $26.32. The company has a quick ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 1.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.68. The stock has a market cap of $392.63 million, a P/E ratio of 22.00 and a beta of 0.59. Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $16.73 and a twelve month high of $32.03.

Natural Gas Services Group (NYSE:NGS — Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 10th. The oil and gas company reported $0.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.13. Natural Gas Services Group had a return on equity of 7.21% and a net margin of 10.92%.The company had revenue of $43.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $43.25 million. As a group, analysts expect that Natural Gas Services Group, Inc. will post 1.42 EPS for the current year.

Natural Gas Services Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 3rd. Investors of record on Thursday, November 20th will be paid a $0.11 dividend. This is a boost from Natural Gas Services Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 20th. This represents a $0.44 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. Natural Gas Services Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 29.73%.

Natural Gas Services Group announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Monday, August 11th that allows the company to repurchase $6.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the oil and gas company to buy up to 1.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on Natural Gas Services Group from $33.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Natural Gas Services Group in a research report on Monday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded Natural Gas Services Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and two have given a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Strong Buy” and a consensus price target of $35.50.

Get Our Latest Analysis on Natural Gas Services Group

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Stephen Charles Taylor sold 11,457 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.95, for a total value of $320,223.15. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 385,432 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,772,824.40. The trade was a 2.89% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Jean K. Holley purchased 3,752 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $26.58 per share, for a total transaction of $99,728.16. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 7,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $207,324. This represents a 92.69% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 61,252 shares of company stock worth $1,740,298. Insiders own 5.08% of the company’s stock.

About Natural Gas Services Group

(Free Report)

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.

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