New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Shares Bought by Prudential Financial Inc.

Prudential Financial Inc. grew its position in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) by 3,076.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 321,332 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 311,216 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc.’s holdings in New Jersey Resources were worth $14,990,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NJR. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in New Jersey Resources by 110.5% during the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 18,897 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $892,000 after purchasing an additional 9,918 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 2.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,227,815 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,953,000 after purchasing an additional 33,772 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. increased its stake in New Jersey Resources by 153.1% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 93,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,431,000 after buying an additional 56,789 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in New Jersey Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,001,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 30.3% in the third quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 48,624 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,295,000 after acquiring an additional 11,319 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

New Jersey Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:NJR opened at $48.41 on Friday. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 12 month low of $40.62 and a 12 month high of $51.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.85 billion, a PE ratio of 14.58 and a beta of 0.57. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $47.55 and its 200 day moving average price is $47.35.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 prior year, the company posted $0.74 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.72%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. New Jersey Resources’s payout ratio is 54.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NJR. StockNews.com upgraded New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Guggenheim increased their price target on New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, New Jersey Resources has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $51.75.

Insider Activity at New Jersey Resources

In related news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.58, for a total transaction of $113,968.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 23,822 shares in the company, valued at $1,157,272.76. This trade represents a 8.97 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

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.