Ibex Wealth Advisors Acquires Shares of 6,321 New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

Ibex Wealth Advisors bought a new position in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 6,321 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $295,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in New Jersey Resources in the third quarter worth about $27,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources in the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 9,400.0% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 665 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 69.8% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp bought a new position in New Jersey Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at $52,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

New Jersey Resources Stock Up 1.8 %

New Jersey Resources stock traded up $0.87 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $47.90. 124,142 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 503,410. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.62. The firm has a market cap of $4.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.40 and a beta of 0.64. The business has a fifty day moving average of $47.76 and a 200 day moving average of $46.82. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 12-month low of $39.44 and a 12-month 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 for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 13.54% and a net margin of 16.13%. The company had revenue of $395.78 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $406.97 million. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.30 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 19.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. New Jersey Resources's payout ratio is presently 61.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling at New Jersey Resources

In other New Jersey Resources news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 4,983 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total transaction of $229,218.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 37,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,707,704. The trade was a 11.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NJR has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price 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. Guggenheim lifted their target price on New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded New Jersey Resources from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, New Jersey Resources presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $50.50.

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.