Register Financial Advisors LLC Raises Stock Holdings in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Register Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU - Free Report) by 26.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 199,502 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 41,429 shares during the period. MDU Resources Group comprises approximately 1.8% of Register Financial Advisors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Register Financial Advisors LLC owned 0.10% of MDU Resources Group worth $3,595,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 23.9% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 2,142 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 413 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 32,739 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $896,000 after acquiring an additional 641 shares in the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC raised its position in MDU Resources Group by 158.9% during the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,196 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 734 shares during the period. Ingalls & Snyder LLC lifted its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 2.2% during the third quarter. Ingalls & Snyder LLC now owns 39,335 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,078,000 after purchasing an additional 850 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC grew its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 0.5% in the third quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 169,263 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,640,000 after purchasing an additional 868 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.44% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Siebert Williams Shank upgraded shares of MDU Resources Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $19.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on MDU Resources Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $18.00 target price on the stock. Bank of America raised MDU Resources Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $31.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Finally, StockNews.com started coverage on MDU Resources Group in a research note on Friday, January 3rd. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MDU Resources Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $21.00.

MDU Resources Group Trading Down 2.3 %

NYSE MDU traded down $0.43 during trading on Monday, hitting $17.68. The stock had a trading volume of 1,559,907 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,397,519. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The company has a market capitalization of $3.60 billion, a PE ratio of 9.06, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.81. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $18.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $23.08. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $14.91 and a twelve month high of $30.52.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $969.17 million. MDU Resources Group had a return on equity of 11.24% and a net margin of 8.92%. The company's revenue was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.29 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 1.09 earnings per share for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 12th were issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 12th. MDU Resources Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.67%.

About MDU Resources Group

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.