Ancora Advisors LLC Has $10.07 Million Holdings in MDU Resources Group, Inc. $MDU

Key Points

• Ancora Advisors LLC reduced its stake in MDU Resources Group by 20.2%, selling 150,340 shares to hold a total of 595,655 shares valued at approximately $10.1 million.
• In a recent update, MDU Resources Group's CFO purchased 5,000 shares at $16.27 each, indicating insider confidence as they increased their position by 1.49%.
• MDU Resources Group has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.14 per share, representing a 7.7% increase from the previous dividend and a yield of 3.4% based on current share price.

Ancora Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU - Free Report) by 20.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 595,655 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 150,340 shares during the quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.29% of MDU Resources Group worth $10,073,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,405,598 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $395,789,000 after acquiring an additional 408,146 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 3.2% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,450,566 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $142,894,000 after acquiring an additional 263,572 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 30.1% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,124,863 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $52,841,000 after acquiring an additional 723,560 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 6.9% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,329,538 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $39,392,000 after buying an additional 150,181 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 7.7% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,276,045 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $38,533,000 after buying an additional 162,026 shares in the last quarter. 71.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded MDU Resources Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $18.00.

Insider Transactions at MDU Resources Group

In other news, CFO Jason L. Vollmer acquired 5,000 shares of MDU Resources Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $16.27 per share, with a total value of $81,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 339,548 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,524,445.96. This trade represents a 1.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.94% of the company's stock.

MDU Resources Group Stock Down 0.5%

MDU traded down $0.08 during trading on Friday, reaching $16.16. 1,688,227 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,573,141. The stock has a market cap of $3.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.70. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $14.91 and a fifty-two week high of $30.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $16.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.76.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $351.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $315.67 million. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 8.25% and a return on equity of 8.29%. MDU Resources Group's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.32 EPS. MDU Resources Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.880-0.950 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 EPS for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, September 11th will be given a dividend of $0.14 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 11th. This is a positive change from MDU Resources Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. MDU Resources Group's payout ratio is 52.83%.

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.