MetLife Investment Management LLC Grows Holdings in NewJersey Resources Corporation $NJR

Key Points

• MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its stake in New Jersey Resources Corporation by 22.1%, acquiring an additional 25,059 shares during the 1st quarter.
• New Jersey Resources reported a net income of $0.06 earnings per share, exceeding analyst expectations, despite having revenues slightly below forecasts.
• The company has a current consensus rating of "Hold" from analysts with a target price of $51.43 based on recent evaluations.

MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 22.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 138,465 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 25,059 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC owned 0.14% of NewJersey Resources worth $6,793,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in NJR. Marshall Wace LLP bought a new stake in shares of NewJersey Resources during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $611,000. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC boosted its stake in NewJersey Resources by 91.7% during the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 7,665 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $358,000 after purchasing an additional 3,667 shares during the last quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of NewJersey Resources by 192.4% in the 4th quarter. Susquehanna International Group LLP now owns 52,804 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,463,000 after purchasing an additional 34,745 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of NewJersey Resources by 10.0% in the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 71,402 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,331,000 after purchasing an additional 6,481 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC purchased a new position in shares of NewJersey Resources in the fourth quarter worth $226,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

NewJersey Resources Stock Performance

NYSE NJR traded down $0.06 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $47.23. 566,461 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 575,530. NewJersey Resources Corporation has a 52 week low of $43.80 and a 52 week high of $51.94. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.55 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The business's fifty day moving average price is $46.27 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $46.97.

NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.06 earnings per share 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 the consensus estimate of $305.05 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned ($0.09) earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that NewJersey Resources Corporation will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on NJR shares. 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 report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of NewJersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Mizuho reduced their price target 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of NewJersey Resources from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of NewJersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $51.43.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 1,500 shares of NewJersey Resources stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.22, for a total transaction of $66,330.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 35,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,578,211.80. The trade was a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

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.