Russell Investments Group Ltd. Reduces Stock Position in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. lowered its position in shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR – Get Rating) by 10.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,043 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,441 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in New Jersey Resources were worth $1,094,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NJR. American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 172.2% in the 1st quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 14,056 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $645,000 after purchasing an additional 8,893 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can increased its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 3.3% in the 1st quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 52,212 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,421,000 after acquiring an additional 1,664 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS increased its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 35,205 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,615,000 after acquiring an additional 3,233 shares in the last quarter. APG Asset Management N.V. bought a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the 1st quarter worth about $2,081,000. Finally, Great West Life Assurance Co. Can increased its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 12.7% in the 1st quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 114,869 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,510,000 after acquiring an additional 12,945 shares in the last quarter. 74.09% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

New Jersey Resources Stock Performance

NJR opened at $48.87 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The company has a market cap of $4.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.18, a PEG ratio of 3.05 and a beta of 0.65. The company’s 50 day moving average is $51.87 and its 200 day moving average is $50.45. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 12-month low of $38.07 and a 12-month high of $55.84.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR – Get Rating) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by ($0.04). New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 14.22% and a net margin of 10.94%. The business had revenue of $644.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $954.32 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.36 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 29.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 2.71 EPS for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 14th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 13th. New Jersey Resources’s payout ratio is currently 51.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NJR. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 7th. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $47.00 in a report on Monday, April 24th. Finally, StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of New Jersey Resources in a report on Thursday, May 18th. They set a “sell” rating on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and two have assigned a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $48.50.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.04, for a total value of $250,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 180,372 shares in the company, valued at $9,025,814.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.04, for a total value of $250,200.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 180,372 shares in the company, valued at $9,025,814.88. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 2,040 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.00, for a total transaction of $104,040.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 38,129 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,944,579. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

New Jersey Resources Company Profile

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New Jersey Resources Corp. is a holding company. The firm provides safe and reliable natural gas and clean energy services, including transportation, distribution, asset management and home services. It operates through the following segments: Natural Gas Distribution, Clean Energy Ventures, Energy Services, Storage and Transportation, and Home Services and Other.