Nixon Capital LLC Grows Position in MDU Resources Group, Inc. $MDU

Key Points

• Nixon Capital LLC increased its stake in MDU Resources Group by 6.4%, now owning approximately 0.35% of the company, valued at nearly $12 million.
• MDU Resources Group recently announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.14 per share, raising the annualized dividend to $0.56 with a yield of 3.5%.
• Wall Street analysts downgraded MDU from a "hold" rating to a "sell," with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $18.00.

Nixon Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU - Free Report) by 6.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 709,412 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 42,557 shares during the period. MDU Resources Group makes up 4.1% of Nixon Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 12th largest holding. Nixon Capital LLC owned about 0.35% of MDU Resources Group worth $11,996,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 23,405,598 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $395,789,000 after buying an additional 408,146 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 8,450,566 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $142,894,000 after buying an additional 263,572 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 30.1% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,124,863 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $52,841,000 after buying an additional 723,560 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 6.9% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,329,538 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $39,392,000 after buying an additional 150,181 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 7.7% during the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 2,276,045 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $38,533,000 after buying an additional 162,026 shares in the last quarter. 71.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, Wall Street Zen cut MDU Resources Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $18.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Jason L. Vollmer purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $16.27 per share, with a total value of $81,350.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 339,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,524,445.96. This represents a 1.49% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.94% of the company's stock.

MDU Resources Group Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of MDU traded down $0.08 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $16.16. The stock had a trading volume of 1,688,227 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,505,324. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $14.91 and a 12 month high of $30.52. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $16.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $16.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The company has a market capitalization of $3.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.70.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $351.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $315.67 million. MDU Resources Group had a return on equity of 8.29% and a net margin of 8.25%.MDU Resources Group's revenue for the quarter was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.32 earnings per share. MDU Resources Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.880-0.950 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MDU Resources Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, September 11th will be given a $0.14 dividend. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 11th. This is an increase from MDU Resources Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. MDU Resources Group's payout ratio is currently 49.06%.

About MDU Resources Group

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.