Stifel raised its price target on Northwest Natural Gas (NYSE:NWN) from $45 to $49 and maintained a Buy rating on the stock in early June. It followed the first-quarter report that came in ahead of expectations once one-time items were accounted for.
What made this note stand out wasn’t just the earnings beat; it was the firm’s reaction to NWN’s new reporting structure. The company has started breaking out results for its Water Utility and SiEnergy segments separately. Stifel analyst viewed this as a meaningful improvement and noted it as a necessary step for investors to follow what it sees as the most promising parts of NWN’s business.
A technician inspecting a bundle of natural gas piping in a refinery.
The valuation shift, now based on 2026 estimates instead of earlier years, also marks a longer-range perspective. In Stifel’s view, the story’s not just about stable earnings now, but about having a clearer window into growth that had previously been bundled and obscured.
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