MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) Now Covered by Analysts at StockNews.com

StockNews.com assumed coverage on shares of MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday morning. The firm issued a hold rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued research reports about the company. Siebert Williams Shank upgraded MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, November 4th. Bank of America raised shares of MDU Resources Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $31.00 to $17.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th.

MDU Resources Group Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of MDU opened at $18.20 on Thursday. 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 has a 52-week low of $14.91 and a 52-week high of $30.52. The company has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a PE ratio of 9.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.79. The business has a fifty day moving average of $20.45 and a 200 day moving average of $24.05.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $969.17 million. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 8.92% and a return on equity of 11.24%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.29 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that MDU Resources Group will post 1.13 EPS for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 12th. MDU Resources Group’s payout ratio is 26.67%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MDU Resources Group

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. purchased a new position in MDU Resources Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $2,234,000. Foundry Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of MDU Resources Group in the 3rd quarter worth $4,594,000. Resolute Capital Asset Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of MDU Resources Group in the 2nd quarter worth $2,008,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,082,468 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $57,080,000 after purchasing an additional 101,955 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in MDU Resources Group during the second quarter valued at about $1,281,000. Institutional investors own 71.44% of the company’s stock.

MDU Resources Group Company 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.