New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) CFO Sells $113,968.68 in Stock

New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,157,272.76. This represents a 8.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

New Jersey Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:NJR traded up $0.99 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $49.38. The stock had a trading volume of 743,300 shares, compared to its average volume of 506,409. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.87 and a beta of 0.57. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 1-year low of $40.62 and a 1-year high of $51.95. 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's fifty day simple moving average is $47.59 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.38.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.15. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 18.25%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.74 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.65%. New Jersey Resources's payout ratio is 54.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on NJR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Guggenheim raised their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of New Jersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $51.75.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,227,815 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $57,953,000 after purchasing an additional 33,772 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. raised its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 59.0% in 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 acquiring an additional 12,353 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,211,702 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $56,526,000 after acquiring an additional 96,393 shares during the period. Holocene Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 22.2% during the 3rd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 60,162 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,840,000 after purchasing an additional 10,946 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp bought a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $429,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently 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.