Gas Natural Inc. Files Shelf Registration Statement

CLEVELAND, March 31, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Gas Natural Inc. (NYSE MKT: EGAS) (the "Company"), a holding company operating local natural gas utilities serving approximately 68,000 customers in four states, announced that today it filed a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), replacing a recently expired shelf registration statement.  The offering of securities covered by the shelf registration statement will provide the Company with financial flexibility to take advantage of acquisitions and other business opportunities when, and if, such opportunities arise, subject to market conditions and the capital requirements of the Company.

When the shelf registration is declared effective by the SEC, it will permit the Company to offer and sell up to $50 million of common stock.  The actual amount will be determined at the time of sale, if such sale occurs.  As of the date of this release, the Company has no specific plans to offer the securities covered by the registration statement, and is not required to offer the securities in the future. 

Gregory J. Osborne, Gas Natural's President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, "Maintaining a current shelf registration is prudent to provide additional financial flexibility for Gas Natural.  While we do not have immediate plans for raising and using this additional capital, we anticipate that it will afford more efficient access to the capital markets and allow us to act opportunistically in support of our growth strategy."

A registration statement relating to these securities has been filed with the SEC but has not yet become effective.  Following the effectiveness of the shelf registration statement, Gas Natural may periodically offer the registered securities in one or more offerings. The specific terms of any offering under the registration statement will be established at the time of any such offering, and will be described in a prospectus supplement that Gas Natural will file at that time with the SEC.  These securities may not be sold, nor may offers to buy be accepted, prior to the time the registration statement becomes effective.  This press release is not an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction.  Any offering of the securities covered by the shelf registration statement will only be by means of a prospectus and an accompanying prospectus supplement.  When available, copies of the prospectus, and any prospectus supplement relating to a particular offering, may be obtained by contacting Gas Natural Inc. at 1375 East Ninth Street, Suite 3100, Cleveland, Ohio 44114, Attn: James E. Sprague, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Telephone: 800-570-5688.

About Gas Natural Inc.
Gas Natural Inc., a holding company, distributes and sells natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers.  It distributes approximately 21 billion cubic feet of natural gas to approximately 68,000 customers through regulated utilities operating in Montana, Ohio, Maine and North Carolina.  The Company's other operations include interstate pipeline, natural gas production, and natural gas marketing.  The Company's Montana public utility was originally incorporated in 1909.  Its strategy for growth is to expand throughput in its markets, while looking for acquisitions that are either adjacent to its existing utilities or in under saturated markets.  Gas Natural Inc. regularly posts information on its website at www.egas.net.

Safe Harbor Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
The Company is including the following cautionary statement in this release to make applicable and to take advantage of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 for any forward-looking statements made by, or on behalf of, Gas Natural Inc. Forward-looking statements are all statements other than statements of historical fact, including, without limitation, those that are identified by the use of the words "anticipates," "estimates," "expects," "intends," "plans," "predicts," "believes" and similar expressions. Such statements are inherently subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed. Factors that may affect forward-looking statements and the Company's business generally include, but are not limited to the Company's ability to consummate the corporate reorganization and debt refinancing on terms that are acceptable to the Company, or at all; the Company's ability to successfully integrate the operations of the companies it has acquired and consummate additional acquisitions; the Company's continued ability to make or increase dividend payments; the Company's ability to implement its business plan, grow earnings and improve returns on investment; fluctuating energy commodity prices; the possibility that regulators may not permit the Company to pass through all of its increased costs to its customers; changes in the utility regulatory environment; wholesale and retail competition; the Company's ability to satisfy its debt obligations, including compliance with financial covenants; weather conditions; litigation risks; and various other matters, many of which are beyond the Company's control; the risk factors and cautionary statements made in the Company's public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission; and other factors that the Company is currently unable to identify or quantify, but may exist in the future. Gas Natural Inc. expressly undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement contained herein to reflect any change in Gas Natural Inc.'s expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.

To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/gas-natural-inc-files-shelf-registration-statement-300244370.html

SOURCE Gas Natural Inc.