United Services Automobile Association Purchases New Position in NewJersey Resources Corporation $NJR

Key Points

• United Services Automobile Association acquired a new position in NewJersey Resources Corporation, purchasing 6,442 shares valued at approximately $318,000.
• The company announced an increase in its quarterly dividend to $0.475 per share, reflecting a yield of 4.0% and an annualized dividend of $1.90.
• NewJersey Resources reported earnings per share of $0.06 for the last quarter, beating analysts' estimates and showing an 8.5% year-over-year revenue increase.

United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 6,442 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $318,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in NewJersey Resources in the first quarter worth approximately $29,509,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of NewJersey Resources by 66.0% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,363,495 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $63,607,000 after buying an additional 542,089 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of NewJersey Resources in the 1st quarter worth $8,907,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NewJersey Resources by 6,150.4% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 143,010 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $7,016,000 after acquiring an additional 140,722 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. bought a new stake in NewJersey Resources during the 1st quarter valued at about $6,834,000. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

NewJersey Resources Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE NJR opened at $47.16 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.76, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. NewJersey Resources Corporation has a 12-month low of $43.80 and a 12-month high of $51.94. The company has a 50-day moving average of $46.57 and a 200 day moving average of $46.98. The stock has a market cap of $4.74 billion, a PE ratio of 11.53 and a beta of 0.67.

NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.06 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $298.95 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $305.05 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.09) earnings per share. NewJersey Resources's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that NewJersey Resources Corporation will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NewJersey Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. This is a boost from NewJersey Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 22nd. NewJersey Resources's payout ratio is 44.01%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of NewJersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of NewJersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 target price (up previously from $49.00) on shares of NewJersey Resources in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, NewJersey Resources presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $51.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NewJersey Resources news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.22, for a total transaction 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 $1,578,211.80. This trade represents a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.72% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.

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