New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Sets New 12-Month Low - Here's What Happened

New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $40.00 and last traded at $47.61, with a volume of 534 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $48.03.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NJR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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, January 28th. StockNews.com raised shares of New Jersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $51.75.

Remove Ads

New Jersey Resources Trading Up 1.6 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.76 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.03. The stock has a market cap of $4.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.80 and a beta of 0.63.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.74 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.66%. New Jersey Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.22%.

Insider Transactions at New Jersey Resources

In related news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 4,983 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 directly owns 37,124 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,707,704. This represents a 11.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of New Jersey Resources

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NJR. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 9,400.0% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 665 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 69.8% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $42,000. 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.