PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Grows Holdings in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. increased its position in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) by 6.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 87,051 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,206 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc.’s holdings in MDU Resources Group were worth $1,724,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bridgefront Capital LLC boosted its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 39.7% during the fourth quarter. Bridgefront Capital LLC now owns 18,138 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $359,000 after purchasing an additional 5,159 shares during the last quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC boosted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 3.2% in the fourth quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC now owns 2,141,514 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,402,000 after acquiring an additional 67,273 shares during the last quarter. Cladis Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Cladis Investment Advisory LLC now owns 73,621 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,458,000 after acquiring an additional 1,075 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,561,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $50,710,000 after acquiring an additional 44,067 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jones Financial Companies Lllp boosted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 129.3% in the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 8,977 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $178,000 after acquiring an additional 5,062 shares during the last quarter. 71.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MDU Resources Group Stock Performance

Shares of MDU stock opened at $25.27 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.80, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a current ratio of 1.43, a quick ratio of 1.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $24.90 and its 200 day moving average is $22.41. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.04 and a 12 month high of $25.99.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $1.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.33 billion. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 11.42%. MDU Resources Group’s revenue was down 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.23 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, June 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.125 per share. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.98%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 13th. MDU Resources Group’s payout ratio is currently 21.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MDU has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Argus upgraded shares of MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, May 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 27th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Rob L. Johnson bought 36,291 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $25.46 per share, with a total value of $923,968.86. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 41,934 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,067,639.64. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

MDU Resources Group Profile

MDU Resources Group, Inc engages in the regulated energy delivery, and construction materials and services businesses in the United States. It operates through four segments: Electric, Natural Gas Distribution, Pipeline, and Construction Services. The Electric segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity for residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and operates 3,400 miles of transmission lines, 4,800 miles of distribution lines, and 82 transmission and 298 distribution substations.