Capital Fund Management S.A. Makes New $458,000 Investment in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Capital Fund Management S.A. purchased a new position in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 25,412 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $458,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 16.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,997,452 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $414,414,000 after purchasing an additional 3,276,114 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,719,543 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $101,978,000 after purchasing an additional 65,433 shares during the last quarter. Pertento Partners LLP raised its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 90.3% in the fourth quarter. Pertento Partners LLP now owns 2,990,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $53,882,000 after buying an additional 1,419,118 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of MDU Resources Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,857,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in MDU Resources Group by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,179,357 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $39,272,000 after acquiring an additional 96,889 shares during the last quarter. 71.44% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MDU. StockNews.com downgraded MDU Resources Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of MDU Resources Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $18.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MDU Resources Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $21.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at MDU Resources Group

In other news, Director Dennis W. Johnson purchased 30,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $16.64 per share, for a total transaction of $499,200.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 180,166 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,997,962.24. This trade represents a 19.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

MDU Resources Group Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE MDU traded up $0.03 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $16.78. The company had a trading volume of 967,855 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,513,024. The company has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.07. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $13.23 and a fifty-two week high of $20.39. The firm's 50 day moving average is $16.70 and its 200 day moving average is $19.28.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.03. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 7.31% and a return on equity of 10.20%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MDU Resources Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. MDU Resources Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.68%.

MDU Resources Group Company 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.