MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) Shares Purchased by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) by 18.8% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 38,903 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,164 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in MDU Resources Group were worth $701,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MDU. State Street Corp increased its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 1.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,344,185 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $174,713,000 after buying an additional 114,719 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,719,543 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $101,978,000 after acquiring an additional 65,433 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 4.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,179,357 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,272,000 after acquiring an additional 96,889 shares during the last quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 1,098.5% during the 4th quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 2,155,007 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $38,833,000 after acquiring an additional 1,975,200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 18.6% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,114,019 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $37,926,000 after purchasing an additional 331,481 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.44% of the company’s stock.

MDU Resources Group Trading Up 0.0 %

NYSE:MDU opened at $16.67 on Friday. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $12.99 and a 52-week high of $20.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $17.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.46. The company has a market capitalization of $3.41 billion, a PE ratio of 12.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.81.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.03. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 7.31% and a return on equity of 10.20%. On average, research analysts anticipate that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 EPS for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. MDU Resources Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.68%.

Insider Activity

In other MDU Resources Group news, Director Dennis W. Johnson purchased 30,000 shares of MDU Resources Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $16.64 per share, with a total value of $499,200.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 180,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,997,962.24. This represents a 19.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on MDU. StockNews.com lowered shares of MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of MDU Resources Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $18.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.00.

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.