Ameriprise Financial Inc. Purchases 290,756 Shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU - Free Report) by 134.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 507,793 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 290,756 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. owned 0.25% of MDU Resources Group worth $9,152,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. First Trust Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 132.0% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 6,999,856 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $126,137,000 after buying an additional 3,982,783 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 16.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,997,452 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $414,414,000 after buying an additional 3,276,114 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of MDU Resources Group in the fourth quarter worth $40,857,000. Pertento Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 90.3% in the fourth quarter. Pertento Partners LLP now owns 2,990,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $53,882,000 after buying an additional 1,419,118 shares during the period. Finally, Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 300.1% in the fourth quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 691,993 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $12,470,000 after buying an additional 519,029 shares during the period. 71.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com raised shares of MDU Resources Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th.

MDU Resources Group Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE MDU opened at $17.61 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $13.23 and a 12 month high of $20.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.60 billion, a PE ratio of 12.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.72. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $16.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $17.57.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $674.80 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $653.13 million. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 7.31% and a return on equity of 10.20%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.52 EPS. Equities analysts expect that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 12th will be given a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.95%. MDU Resources Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.31%.

About MDU Resources Group

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.

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