JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Price Target to $52.00

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) had its target price decreased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $54.00 to $52.00 in a report published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. currently has an overweight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other equities analysts have also commented on NJR. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com cut New Jersey Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their price target on New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $50.50.

New Jersey Resources Trading Up 1.8 %

Shares of NJR stock opened at $47.90 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.78 billion, a PE ratio of 16.40 and a beta of 0.64. New Jersey Resources has a 52-week low of $39.44 and a 52-week high of $51.94. The business’s fifty day moving average is $47.76 and its 200 day moving average is $46.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.62.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.89. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 13.54% and a net margin of 16.13%. The firm had revenue of $395.78 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $406.97 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.30 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 19.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that New Jersey Resources will post 3.1 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. New Jersey Resources’s payout ratio is presently 61.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling at New Jersey Resources

In other news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 4,983 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total value of $229,218.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 37,124 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,707,704. This trade represents a 11.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of New Jersey Resources

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Roxbury Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in New Jersey Resources in the third quarter worth about $27,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 9,400.0% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 665 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 658 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 69.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.