California Public Employees Retirement System Trims Stock Holdings in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

California Public Employees Retirement System decreased its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 455,739 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 7,294 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System owned 0.45% of New Jersey Resources worth $21,260,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 28,781 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,343,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the period. Good Life Advisors LLC increased its position in New Jersey Resources by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 34,643 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,616,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 69.8% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC raised its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 25,522 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,191,000 after purchasing an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ICW Investment Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. ICW Investment Advisors LLC now owns 17,721 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $827,000 after purchasing an additional 414 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at New Jersey Resources

In other news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief financial officer now owns 23,822 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,157,272.76. This represents a 8.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NJR has been the subject of a number of research reports. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on New Jersey Resources in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "hold" rating and a $51.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. New Street Research set a $51.00 target price on shares of New Jersey Resources in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $51.50.

New Jersey Resources Stock Performance

NYSE NJR traded up $1.11 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $48.05. The company's stock had a trading volume of 94,728 shares, compared to its average volume of 516,805. 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 company has a market cap of $4.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.43 and a beta of 0.58. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $47.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.44. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 12 month low of $40.62 and a 12 month high of $51.95.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 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 last year, the firm earned $0.74 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th were issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. New Jersey Resources's payout ratio is currently 54.22%.

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.