AQR Capital Management LLC Decreases Position in NewJersey Resources Corporation $NJR

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC has reduced its holdings in New Jersey Resources Corporation by 11.9%, owning 369,257 shares after selling 49,878 shares in the first quarter.
• New Jersey Resources reported $0.06 earnings per share for the most recent quarter, which exceeded analysts' expectations by $0.12.
• Research analysts have varied price targets for NJR, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreasing their target from $56.00 to $51.00, while Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating with a target of $50.00.

AQR Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 11.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 369,257 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 49,878 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.37% of NewJersey Resources worth $18,116,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of NewJersey Resources by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 11,228 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $551,000 after acquiring an additional 881 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in NewJersey Resources by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 232,427 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $11,403,000 after purchasing an additional 4,770 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in NewJersey Resources by 27.4% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,915 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $143,000 after purchasing an additional 627 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its position in NewJersey Resources by 83.7% during the 1st quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,859 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $91,000 after purchasing an additional 847 shares during the period. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its position in NewJersey Resources by 3.8% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 11,741 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $576,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on NewJersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price target (up from $49.00) on shares of NewJersey Resources in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised NewJersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $51.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.22, for a total value of $66,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 35,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,578,211.80. This trade represents a 4.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

NewJersey Resources Price Performance

Shares of NJR stock traded down $0.02 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $47.19. 782,631 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 508,215. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $46.61 and a 200 day moving average of $46.96. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. NewJersey Resources Corporation has a 52-week low of $43.80 and a 52-week high of $51.94. The company has a market cap of $4.74 billion, a PE ratio of 11.54 and a beta of 0.67.

NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by $0.12. NewJersey Resources had a net margin of 19.64% and a return on equity of 17.08%. The business had revenue of $298.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $305.05 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted ($0.09) EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that NewJersey Resources Corporation will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

NewJersey Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 22nd will be paid a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 22nd. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. This is a boost from NewJersey Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. NewJersey Resources's dividend payout ratio is 44.01%.

NewJersey 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.