KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Purchases Shares of 40,100 New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 40,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,885,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NJR. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 28,781 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,343,000 after buying an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 34,643 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,616,000 after acquiring an additional 327 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 69.8% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 25,522 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,191,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. increased its stake in New Jersey Resources by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 12,237 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $571,000 after acquiring an additional 418 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.75.

Insider Transactions at New Jersey Resources

In other news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 23,822 shares in the company, valued at $1,157,272.76. The trade was a 8.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.72% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

New Jersey Resources Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NJR opened at $48.41 on Friday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $47.55 and its 200-day simple moving average is $47.35. New Jersey Resources Co. has a one year low of $40.62 and a one year high of $51.95. The company has a market capitalization of $4.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.58 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.61.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.74 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

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

About New Jersey Resources

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.