Raymond James Financial Inc. Acquires New Holdings in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 47,783 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $861,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in MDU Resources Group by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,179,357 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $39,272,000 after purchasing an additional 96,889 shares during the period. Unified Investment Management bought a new stake in shares of MDU Resources Group during the fourth quarter worth about $371,000. Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 39.9% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 89,116 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,606,000 after acquiring an additional 25,423 shares in the last quarter. Bailard Inc. raised its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 109.2% in the 4th quarter. Bailard Inc. now owns 43,288 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $780,000 after acquiring an additional 22,600 shares during the last quarter. Finally, US Bancorp DE increased its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 1,730,962 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,192,000 after purchasing an additional 57,265 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.44% of the company's stock.

Remove Ads

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on MDU Resources Group in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a "hold" rating and a $18.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of MDU Resources Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $21.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at MDU Resources Group

In other MDU Resources Group news, Director Dennis W. Johnson purchased 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $16.64 per share, with a total value of $499,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 180,166 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,997,962.24. This trade represents a 19.98 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 1.00% of the company's stock.

MDU Resources Group Stock Performance

MDU stock traded up $0.68 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $16.28. The company had a trading volume of 1,793,508 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,524,370. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.15. The firm has a market cap of $3.33 billion, a PE ratio of 11.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.68. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $12.99 and a 12 month high of $20.39. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $16.77 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $19.75.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.03. MDU Resources Group had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 7.31%. On average, analysts forecast that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MDU Resources Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th were paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. MDU Resources Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 37.68%.

MDU Resources Group Company Profile

MDU Resources Group, Inc engages in the regulated energy delivery, and construction materials and services businesses in the United States. It operates through four segments: Electric, Natural Gas Distribution, Pipeline, and Construction Services. The Electric segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity for residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and operates 3,400 miles of transmission lines, 4,800 miles of distribution lines, and 82 transmission and 298 distribution substations.