New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Shares Purchased by BNP Paribas Financial Markets

BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 30.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 48,624 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 11,319 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets' holdings in New Jersey Resources were worth $2,295,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in New Jersey Resources during the third quarter worth approximately $1,001,000. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd increased its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 247.5% in the 3rd quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 31,646 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,494,000 after acquiring an additional 22,538 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. increased its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 153.1% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 93,876 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,431,000 after acquiring an additional 56,789 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in New Jersey Resources by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,227,815 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $57,953,000 after purchasing an additional 33,772 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 110.5% during the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 18,897 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $892,000 after purchasing an additional 9,918 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NJR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com raised New Jersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price target 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. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $49.75.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

Shares of NJR stock traded down $0.62 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $49.18. 469,047 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 458,549. The firm has a market cap of $4.91 billion, a PE ratio of 16.84 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $47.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $45.72. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 1-year low of $39.44 and a 1-year high of $51.94.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.89. The firm had revenue of $395.78 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $406.97 million. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 13.54% and a net margin of 16.13%. New Jersey Resources's revenue was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.30 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.05 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.66%. New Jersey Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 61.64%.

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.