NewJersey Resources Corporation $NJR Stock Holdings Raised by Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc.

Key Points

• Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR) by 0.6% to approximately $62.53 million, owning about 1.27% of the company as of the end of the first quarter.
• The stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" with a price target of $51.43, reflecting mixed analyst sentiments, including both upgrades and downgrades recently.
• NewJersey Resources reported a positive earnings surprise of $0.12 in its latest quarterly earnings, with revenue increasing 8.5% compared to the previous year despite missing consensus estimates.

Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 0.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,274,588 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,132 shares during the quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. owned about 1.27% of NewJersey Resources worth $62,531,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new position in NewJersey Resources during the first quarter worth about $37,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NewJersey Resources by 42.0% during the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 248 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of NewJersey Resources in the fourth quarter worth approximately $51,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC increased its position in NewJersey Resources by 6,245.8% during the fourth quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 1,523 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $71,000 after purchasing an additional 1,499 shares during the last quarter. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in NewJersey Resources by 107.9% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 1,744 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $86,000 after purchasing an additional 905 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on NJR. Mizuho lowered 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. Raymond James Financial reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $50.00 target price (up previously from $49.00) on shares of NewJersey Resources in a report on Friday, August 8th. Wall Street Zen downgraded NewJersey Resources from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on NewJersey Resources from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note 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 for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NewJersey Resources presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $51.43.

NewJersey Resources Stock Down 1.4%

NYSE NJR traded down $0.67 on Monday, reaching $46.30. The company had a trading volume of 134,564 shares, compared to its average volume of 628,096. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.48. NewJersey Resources Corporation has a 1 year low of $43.80 and a 1 year high of $51.94. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $45.67 and a 200-day moving average of $46.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.65 billion, a PE ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 0.64.

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, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $305.05 million. During the same period last year, the business earned ($0.09) EPS. The business's revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that NewJersey Resources Corporation will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chief operating officer owned 35,690 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,578,211.80. This represents a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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.