GAMMA Investing LLC Has $7.02 Million Holdings in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 6,150.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 143,010 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 140,722 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC owned approximately 0.14% of New Jersey Resources worth $7,016,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,309,166 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $154,372,000 after buying an additional 216,000 shares during the last quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its position in New Jersey Resources by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 2,591,445 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $120,891,000 after purchasing an additional 32,413 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in New Jersey Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $73,124,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 66.0% during the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,363,495 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $63,607,000 after purchasing an additional 542,089 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 18.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,350,358 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $62,994,000 after buying an additional 210,538 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 1,173 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,132,450. This represents a 4.92% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

New Jersey Resources Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE NJR traded up $0.06 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $44.84. The company had a trading volume of 557,993 shares, compared to its average volume of 547,057. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.89. New Jersey Resources Co. has a twelve month low of $41.68 and a twelve month high of $51.95. The stock's 50 day moving average is $47.26 and its 200-day moving average is $47.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.50 billion, a PE ratio of 13.51 and a beta of 0.62.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Monday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $913.03 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $732.00 million. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 18.25%. The business's revenue was up 38.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.41 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.01%. New Jersey Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.69%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on NJR shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of New Jersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on New Jersey Resources in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $51.00 target price for the company. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $51.67.

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.