New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Stock Holdings Decreased by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 30.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 230,096 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 101,269 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.23% of New Jersey Resources worth $10,861,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of NJR. Sanctuary Advisors LLC increased its stake in New Jersey Resources by 57.5% in the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 22,532 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,150,000 after purchasing an additional 8,230 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the 3rd quarter valued at about $271,000. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,366,381 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $111,714,000 after acquiring an additional 34,782 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 140.0% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 189,827 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,959,000 after acquiring an additional 110,723 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MML Investors Services LLC grew its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 14.5% in the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 8,621 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $407,000 after purchasing an additional 1,093 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at New Jersey Resources

In related news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 4,983 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total value of $229,218.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 37,124 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,707,704. This represents a 11.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

New Jersey Resources Stock Up 0.0 %

New Jersey Resources stock traded up $0.01 during trading on Monday, reaching $46.53. 278,750 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 492,525. The company's 50-day moving average is $47.86 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.62. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 52-week low of $39.44 and a 52-week high of $51.94. The firm has a market cap of $4.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.93 and a beta of 0.63.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.89. The company had revenue of $395.78 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $406.97 million. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 13.54% and a net margin of 16.13%. The company's revenue was up 19.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.30 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.1 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 Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.87%. New Jersey Resources's dividend payout ratio is currently 61.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com raised New Jersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded New Jersey Resources from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $52.00 to $54.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Four investment 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 company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, New Jersey Resources currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $51.00.

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.