6,442 Shares in NewJersey Resources Corporation $NJR Acquired by United Services Automobile Association

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

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NJR. Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in NewJersey Resources by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 16,345 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $763,000 after acquiring an additional 706 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers increased its position in NewJersey Resources by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 11,569 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $540,000 after buying an additional 555 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG increased its position in NewJersey Resources by 48.5% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 190,062 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,866,000 after buying an additional 62,050 shares during the last quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. acquired a new position in NewJersey Resources during the fourth quarter worth approximately $458,000. Finally, 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 buying an additional 1,499 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen raised NewJersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, September 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on NewJersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Finally, Raymond James Financial reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $50.00 price target (up previously from $49.00) on shares of NewJersey Resources in a research report on Friday, August 8th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, NewJersey Resources has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $51.43.

NewJersey Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NewJersey Resources stock traded up $0.45 on Thursday, hitting $46.86. The stock had a trading volume of 596,861 shares, compared to its average volume of 539,893. NewJersey Resources Corporation has a twelve month low of $43.80 and a twelve month high of $51.94. The business's 50 day moving average is $46.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25. The stock has a market cap of $4.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.46 and a beta of 0.67.

NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by $0.12. NewJersey Resources had a return on equity of 17.08% and a net margin of 19.64%.The company had revenue of $298.95 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $305.05 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.09) earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that NewJersey Resources Corporation will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

NewJersey Resources Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 1st. Investors of record on Monday, September 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.475 per share. This is an increase from NewJersey Resources's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 22nd. NewJersey Resources's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.01%.

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.