New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the four brokerages that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $49.00.

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on New Jersey Resources from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com cut New Jersey Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 5.5% in the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 24,292 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,042,000 after acquiring an additional 1,257 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 11.1% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 60,608 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,601,000 after buying an additional 6,039 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the first quarter valued at $312,000. Boston Partners raised its position in New Jersey Resources by 65.5% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 480,001 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $20,623,000 after buying an additional 190,028 shares during the period. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 1.7% in the 2nd quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC now owns 458,483 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $19,596,000 after acquiring an additional 7,836 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

New Jersey Resources Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE:NJR opened at $50.71 on Wednesday. New Jersey Resources has a 1 year low of $39.44 and a 1 year high of $51.80. The business has a fifty day moving average of $47.04 and a 200-day moving average of $45.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market cap of $5.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.37 and a beta of 0.59.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.55%. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.64%.

New Jersey Resources Company 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.