Invesco Ltd. lessened its holdings in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU - Free Report) by 24.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,401,303 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 761,082 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. owned about 1.18% of MDU Resources Group worth $43,271,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MDU. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 16.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,997,452 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $414,414,000 after purchasing an additional 3,276,114 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,719,543 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $101,978,000 after purchasing an additional 65,433 shares during the last quarter. Pertento Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 90.3% in the fourth quarter. Pertento Partners LLP now owns 2,990,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $53,882,000 after buying an additional 1,419,118 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in MDU Resources Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,857,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in MDU Resources Group by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,179,357 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $39,272,000 after buying an additional 96,889 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.44% of the company's stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several equities analysts have issued reports on MDU shares. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of MDU Resources Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a "hold" rating and a $18.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com downgraded MDU Resources Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Thursday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, MDU Resources Group has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $21.00.
Read Our Latest Report on MDU Resources Group
MDU Resources Group Trading Up 2.1 %
NYSE:MDU traded up $0.34 on Tuesday, reaching $16.74. 1,017,701 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,503,703. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.68. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $13.23 and a 1-year high of $20.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The company's 50 day moving average is $16.68 and its 200-day moving average is $19.08.
MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.03. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 7.31% and a return on equity of 10.20%. Equities research analysts anticipate that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.
MDU Resources Group Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th were given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. MDU Resources Group's payout ratio is 37.68%.
Insider Buying and Selling
In related news, Director Dennis W. Johnson purchased 30,000 shares of MDU Resources Group stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $16.64 per share, for a total transaction of $499,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 180,166 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,997,962.24. This trade represents a 19.98 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
About MDU Resources Group
(
Free Report)
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.
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