New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Given New $52.00 Price Target at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) had its price objective trimmed by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $54.00 to $52.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an overweight rating on the utilities provider's stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on NJR. StockNews.com downgraded New Jersey Resources from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Guggenheim lifted 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, November 27th. Finally, 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, November 27th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $50.50.

New Jersey Resources Trading Up 0.2 %

New Jersey Resources stock traded up $0.11 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, hitting $48.00. 417,597 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 511,019. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $47.72 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31. New Jersey Resources has a 12 month low of $39.44 and a 12 month high of $51.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.44 and a beta of 0.64.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.89. New Jersey Resources had a net margin of 16.13% and a return on equity of 13.54%. The business had revenue of $395.78 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $406.97 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.30 earnings per share. New Jersey Resources's revenue for the quarter was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that New Jersey Resources will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. New Jersey Resources's dividend payout ratio is currently 61.64%.

Insider Activity at New Jersey Resources

In other New Jersey Resources news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 4,983 shares of New Jersey Resources 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 completion of the transaction, 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 is accessible through the SEC website. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Kestra Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in New Jersey Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $497,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 2,052.9% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 31,238 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,456,000 after buying an additional 29,787 shares in the last quarter. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Rhumbline Advisers grew its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 352,140 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $16,427,000 after acquiring an additional 1,037 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Stonebridge Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $86,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

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.