LPL Financial LLC Buys 19,338 Shares of NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in NewJersey Resources by 36.5% after acquiring an additional 19,338 shares, bringing its total ownership to 72,249 shares valued at approximately $3.5 million.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on NewJersey Resources, with price objectives ranging from $50.00 to $53.00, while the average target price stands at $51.43.
• The company reported an earnings per share (EPS) of $0.06, exceeding analyst expectations and showing an 8.5% increase in quarterly revenue compared to the previous year.

LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 36.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 72,249 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 19,338 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.07% of NewJersey Resources worth $3,545,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of NewJersey Resources by 42.0% in the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 248 shares in the last quarter. Xponance Inc. grew its holdings in shares of NewJersey Resources by 1.9% in the first quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 15,310 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $751,000 after purchasing an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of NewJersey Resources by 1.0% in the first quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 34,976 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,716,000 after purchasing an additional 333 shares in the last quarter. Choreo LLC grew its holdings in shares of NewJersey Resources by 4.1% in the first quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 9,404 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $465,000 after purchasing an additional 372 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC grew its holdings in shares of NewJersey Resources by 10.9% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,972 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $195,000 after purchasing an additional 390 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on NJR shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of NewJersey Resources from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Mizuho dropped their price objective on shares of NewJersey Resources from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of NewJersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of NewJersey Resources from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price objective (up from $49.00) on shares of NewJersey Resources in a research note on Friday, August 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $51.43.

NewJersey Resources Trading Down 1.1%

NewJersey Resources stock opened at $46.95 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. NewJersey Resources Corporation has a 12 month low of $43.80 and a 12 month high of $51.94. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $45.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $46.94. The firm has a market cap of $4.72 billion, a PE ratio of 11.48 and a beta of 0.64.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In other NewJersey Resources news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 1,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.22, for a total value of $66,330.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 35,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,578,211.80. This trade represents a 4.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

NewJersey Resources Company 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.

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