New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Holdings Raised by Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC

Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC grew its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 61.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 303,906 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 115,995 shares during the period. Cubist Systematic Strategies LLC owned 0.30% of New Jersey Resources worth $14,177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its position in New Jersey Resources by 9,400.0% in 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 during the period. UMB Bank n.a. lifted its stake 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 worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources in the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 1,173 shares of New Jersey Resources stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $58,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 22,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,132,450. The trade was a 4.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on New Jersey Resources in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "hold" rating and a $51.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. New Street Research set a $51.00 price target on New Jersey Resources in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, StockNews.com lowered New Jersey Resources from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $51.33.

New Jersey Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NJR traded down $0.93 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $46.35. 201,899 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 535,447. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.96 and a beta of 0.66. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $48.60 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.82. New Jersey Resources Co. has a twelve month low of $41.58 and a twelve month high of $51.95. 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 - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.11. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 18.25%. The firm had revenue of $913.03 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $732.00 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.41 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 38.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.88%. New Jersey Resources's dividend payout ratio is currently 43.69%.

New Jersey Resources 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.