Millennium Management LLC Purchases 334,713 Shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU - Free Report) by 102.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 661,881 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 334,713 shares during the quarter. Millennium Management LLC owned approximately 0.32% of MDU Resources Group worth $11,927,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its stake in 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 valued at $126,137,000 after acquiring an additional 3,982,783 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in 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 valued at $414,414,000 after acquiring an additional 3,276,114 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in MDU Resources Group in the fourth quarter valued at $40,857,000. Pertento Partners LLP lifted its stake in 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 valued at $53,882,000 after acquiring an additional 1,419,118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in 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 valued at $12,470,000 after acquiring an additional 519,029 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Wall Street Zen upgraded 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 Performance

MDU stock traded down $0.08 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $16.62. The stock had a trading volume of 141,514 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,779,876. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.39 billion, a PE ratio of 12.04, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.72. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $17.57. 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 0.73, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.36 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $674.80 million for 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 was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 earnings per share. Analysts predict that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MDU Resources Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.13%. MDU Resources Group's payout ratio is presently 40.31%.

MDU Resources Group Profile

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.