Wellington Management Group LLP Cuts Stake in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

Wellington Management Group LLP lowered its position in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 8.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 306,219 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 27,038 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned about 0.31% of New Jersey Resources worth $14,285,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new position in New Jersey Resources during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position 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. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. bought a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources in the 4th quarter worth $51,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other New Jersey Resources news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 1,173 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $58,650.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 22,649 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,132,450. This trade represents a 4.92 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

NJR stock traded up $0.58 during trading on Monday, hitting $48.40. 16,220 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 524,588. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 52 week low of $40.62 and a 52 week high of $51.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.61 and a beta of 0.58. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.75 and a 200 day simple moving average of $47.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.89.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 earned $0.74 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th were issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.72%. New Jersey Resources's payout ratio is 54.22%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. New Street Research set a $51.00 target price on shares of New Jersey Resources in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Guggenheim boosted their price target on New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of New Jersey Resources in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $51.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of 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. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of New Jersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Five 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. According to MarketBeat, New Jersey Resources currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $51.50.

New Jersey Resources 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.