State of Tennessee Department of Treasury Reduces Stock Position in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

State of Tennessee Department of Treasury trimmed its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) by 2.7% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 59,689 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,684 shares during the period. State of Tennessee Department of Treasury’s holdings in New Jersey Resources were worth $2,784,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC raised its stake in New Jersey Resources by 91.7% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,665 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $358,000 after buying an additional 3,667 shares during the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 6.8% in the fourth quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 113,406 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,290,000 after acquiring an additional 7,270 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in New Jersey Resources by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,309,166 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $154,372,000 after purchasing an additional 216,000 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources during the 4th quarter valued at about $938,000. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP bought a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $611,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at New Jersey Resources

In other New Jersey Resources news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 1,173 shares of New Jersey Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $58,650.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 22,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,132,450. The trade was a 4.92 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

Shares of New Jersey Resources stock opened at $49.17 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.81 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $48.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.67. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 52 week low of $41.58 and a 52 week high of $51.95.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.74 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.66%. New Jersey Resources’s payout ratio is 54.22%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on New Jersey Resources in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “hold” rating and a $51.00 price target for the company. Guggenheim raised their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, New Street Research set a $51.00 price objective on New Jersey Resources in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $51.50.

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.