New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Shares Bought by Good Life Advisors LLC

Good Life Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) by 1.0% in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 34,976 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 333 shares during the period. Good Life Advisors LLC’s holdings in New Jersey Resources were worth $1,716,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 6,245.8% during the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,523 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 1,499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP boosted its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 13,692.3% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,793 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 1,780 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.58, for a total value of $113,968.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,157,272.76. This represents a 8.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

NJR stock opened at $44.36 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.36 and a beta of 0.62. New Jersey Resources Co. has a twelve month low of $41.68 and a twelve month high of $51.95. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $47.12 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $913.03 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $732.00 million. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 18.25%. The company’s revenue was up 38.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.41 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.06%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. New Jersey Resources’s payout ratio is currently 43.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NJR has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Mizuho lowered their price target on New Jersey Resources from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, May 15th. New Street Research set a $51.00 price target on New Jersey Resources in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on New Jersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Raymond James initiated coverage on New Jersey Resources in a report on Friday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $49.00 price target for the company. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on New Jersey Resources in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a “hold” rating and a $51.00 price target for the company. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $51.29.

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.