Comerica Bank Has $1.99 Million Stake in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Comerica Bank increased its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) by 45.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 110,368 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 34,384 shares during the period. Comerica Bank’s holdings in MDU Resources Group were worth $1,989,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of MDU. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,997,452 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $414,414,000 after buying an additional 3,276,114 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,186,994 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $147,530,000 after acquiring an additional 467,355 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in MDU Resources Group by 132.0% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,999,856 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $126,137,000 after acquiring an additional 3,982,783 shares during the period. Pertento Partners LLP increased its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 90.3% during the fourth quarter. Pertento Partners LLP now owns 2,990,144 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $53,882,000 after acquiring an additional 1,419,118 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of MDU Resources Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,857,000. 71.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, StockNews.com downgraded shares of MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MDU Resources Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.00.

MDU Resources Group Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:MDU opened at $17.36 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $3.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.58, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.72. The business’s 50 day moving average is $16.79 and its 200 day moving average is $18.12. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $13.23 and a 12-month high of $20.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.04. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 7.31% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The firm had revenue of $674.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $653.13 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.52 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 14.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MDU Resources Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were issued a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. MDU Resources Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.68%.

Insider Activity at MDU Resources Group

In other MDU Resources Group news, Director Dennis W. Johnson acquired 30,000 shares of MDU Resources Group stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $16.64 per share, for a total transaction of $499,200.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 180,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,997,962.24. This trade represents a 19.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

MDU Resources Group 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.