New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Now Covered by Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) in a report published on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage issued a hold rating and a $51.00 target price on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other research analysts have also issued reports about the company. Guggenheim upped their target price on New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $51.60.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

NYSE NJR opened at $49.16 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.81 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.65 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.42. New Jersey Resources has a 52-week low of $40.62 and a 52-week high of $51.95.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.15. New Jersey Resources had a net margin of 18.25% and a return on equity of 15.72%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.74 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that New Jersey Resources will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th were issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.66%. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.22%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other New Jersey Resources news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.58, for a total transaction of $113,968.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 23,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,157,272.76. The trade was a 8.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 59.0% during the 4th quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 33,276 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,552,000 after purchasing an additional 12,353 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,211,702 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $56,526,000 after buying an additional 96,393 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,665,000. Holocene Advisors LP grew its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 22.2% in the third quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 60,162 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,840,000 after acquiring an additional 10,946 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new position in New Jersey Resources during the fourth quarter worth $429,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.