BNP Paribas Financial Markets Trims Stake in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

BNP Paribas Financial Markets cut its position in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) by 32.5% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,807 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 11,958 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets’ holdings in MDU Resources Group were worth $680,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 23.9% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,142 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. SummerHaven Investment Management LLC now owns 34,869 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $875,000 after buying an additional 606 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 158.9% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,196 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 734 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC grew its stake in MDU Resources Group by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Personalized Indexing Management LLC now owns 24,264 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $609,000 after acquiring an additional 817 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its stake in MDU Resources Group by 0.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 169,263 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,640,000 after acquiring an additional 868 shares in the last quarter. 71.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MDU Resources Group Trading Down 0.6 %

MDU stock opened at $18.81 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $14.91 and a 52-week high of $30.52. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $24.56. The firm has a market cap of $3.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.65, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.79.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.32 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $969.17 million. MDU Resources Group had a return on equity of 11.24% and a net margin of 8.92%. MDU Resources Group’s revenue was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.29 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 1.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MDU Resources Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 12th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.76%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 12th. MDU Resources Group’s payout ratio is 26.67%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MDU has been the topic of several research reports. Bank of America upgraded MDU Resources Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $31.00 to $17.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on MDU Resources Group in a research note on Tuesday. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Siebert Williams Shank raised shares of MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, November 4th.

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.