New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the six brokerages that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $51.50.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of New Jersey Resources in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $51.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com raised New Jersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. New Street Research set a $51.00 price objective on New Jersey Resources in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Guggenheim increased their target price on New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 23,822 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,157,272.76. This trade represents a 8.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 43.8% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 74,845 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,672,000 after acquiring an additional 22,805 shares in the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in New Jersey Resources by 42.0% during the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its position in New Jersey Resources by 2.1% during the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 232,427 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $11,403,000 after purchasing an additional 4,770 shares during the last quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 15.5% in the 1st quarter. Smallwood Wealth Investment Management LLC now owns 10,568 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $518,000 after buying an additional 1,422 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WASHINGTON TRUST Co purchased a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources during the 1st quarter valued at about $117,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

New Jersey Resources Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:NJR traded down $0.15 on Friday, hitting $49.09. 756,879 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 529,287. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company has a market cap of $4.92 billion, a PE ratio of 14.78 and a beta of 0.58. New Jersey Resources has a 52 week low of $41.58 and a 52 week high of $51.95.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 in the prior year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that New Jersey Resources will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.67%. New Jersey Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.22%.

About New Jersey Resources

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.