Teza Capital Management LLC Sells 6,487 Shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

Teza Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) by 40.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,654 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 6,487 shares during the quarter. Teza Capital Management LLC's holdings in New Jersey Resources were worth $450,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in New Jersey Resources by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 28,781 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,343,000 after purchasing an additional 325 shares during the last quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC raised its stake in New Jersey Resources by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 34,643 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,616,000 after purchasing an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in New Jersey Resources by 69.8% during the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC raised its stake in New Jersey Resources by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 25,522 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,191,000 after purchasing an additional 383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in New Jersey Resources by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 122,953 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $5,736,000 after purchasing an additional 408 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.58, for a total transaction of $113,968.68. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 23,822 shares in the company, valued at $1,157,272.76. This trade represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

Shares of NJR stock traded up $0.28 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $45.75. The company's stock had a trading volume of 431,934 shares, compared to its average volume of 545,036. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 1-year low of $41.58 and a 1-year high of $51.95. The company has a market cap of $4.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.78 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm's 50-day moving average is $48.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $47.82.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $913.03 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $732.00 million. New Jersey Resources had a net margin of 18.25% and a return on equity of 15.72%. The business's revenue was up 38.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.41 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.93%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th. New Jersey Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.69%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently commented on NJR. Guggenheim upped their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Mizuho cut their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of New Jersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of New Jersey Resources in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a "hold" rating and a $51.00 target price for the company. Finally, New Street Research set a $51.00 price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $51.83.

New Jersey 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.