New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the five ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $51.00.

NJR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded New Jersey Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded New Jersey Resources from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $52.00 to $54.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

NJR opened at $46.66 on Thursday. New Jersey Resources has a 12-month low of $39.44 and a 12-month high of $51.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $46.68. The company has a market capitalization of $4.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.98 and a beta of 0.64.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 13.54% and a net margin of 16.13%. The business had revenue of $395.78 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $406.97 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.30 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 19.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that New Jersey Resources will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th were paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, December 11th. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling at New Jersey Resources

In other New Jersey Resources news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 4,983 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total value of $229,218.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 37,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,707,704. This trade represents a 11.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FSA Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 658 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 69.8% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp acquired a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the third quarter valued at about $52,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

New Jersey Resources Company Profile

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.