New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Given New $52.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) had its price objective lowered by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $54.00 to $52.00 in a research note released on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com cut shares of New Jersey Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.50.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

NYSE:NJR opened at $47.44 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $47.82 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The company has a market cap of $4.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.25 and a beta of 0.64. New Jersey Resources has a one year low of $39.44 and a one year high of $51.94.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.89. New Jersey Resources had a net margin of 16.13% and a return on equity of 13.54%. The firm had revenue of $395.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $406.97 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.30 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that New Jersey Resources will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.79%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.64%.

Insider Activity at New Jersey Resources

In related news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 4,983 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total transaction of $229,218.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 37,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,707,704. This trade represents a 11.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in New Jersey Resources in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its position in New Jersey Resources by 9,400.0% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 665 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in New Jersey Resources by 69.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About New Jersey Resources

New Jersey Resources Corporation, an energy services holding company, distributes natural gas. The company operates through four segments: Natural Gas Distribution, Clean Energy Ventures, Energy Services, and Storage and Transportation. The Natural Gas Distribution segment offers regulated natural gas utility services to approximately 576,000 customers in Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, and Sussex counties in New Jersey; provides capacity and storage management services; and participates in the off-system sales and capacity release markets.