Brokerages Set New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) PT at $49.00

New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Hold" from the five brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $49.75.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on NJR shares. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of New Jersey Resources from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th.

New Jersey Resources Stock Up 1.8 %

NYSE:NJR traded up $0.90 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $51.61. The company's stock had a trading volume of 613,686 shares, compared to its average volume of 489,843. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. New Jersey Resources has a 52-week low of $39.44 and a 52-week high of $51.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.77 and a beta of 0.59. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $47.04 and a 200-day moving average of $45.38.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The business 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 $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.49%. New Jersey Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.64%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NJR. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in New Jersey Resources by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,956,772 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $126,372,000 after purchasing an additional 154,441 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,366,381 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $111,714,000 after acquiring an additional 34,782 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 3.2% during the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,284,245 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $54,889,000 after buying an additional 40,094 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 33,772 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 39.9% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 618,379 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $26,430,000 after acquiring an additional 176,396 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.