Brokerages Set NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR) Target Price at $51.29

Key Points

• NewJersey Resources Corporation has received a consensus rating of "Hold" from six brokerage firms, with an average 12-month target price of $51.29.
• The company reported strong earnings, with earnings per share of $1.76, exceeding the consensus estimate by $0.11 and reflecting a 38.8% year-over-year revenue increase.
• Recent insider trading activities include COO Patrick J. Migliaccio selling 1,500 shares, marking a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the company's stock.

Shares of NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Hold" from the six analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $51.2857.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NJR. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of NewJersey Resources from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Raymond James Financial began coverage on NewJersey Resources in a report on Friday, June 13th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $49.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded NewJersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on NewJersey Resources from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of NewJersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th.

Insider Activity

In other NewJersey Resources news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 1,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.22, for a total value of $66,330.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 35,690 shares in the company, valued at $1,578,211.80. This represents a 4.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.72% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of NewJersey Resources in the 1st quarter valued at about $29,509,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its stake in shares of NewJersey Resources by 66.0% during the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in NewJersey Resources by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,309,166 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $154,372,000 after acquiring an additional 216,000 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in NewJersey Resources by 18.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,350,358 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $62,994,000 after acquiring an additional 210,538 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of NewJersey Resources during the 1st quarter valued at about $8,907,000. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NewJersey Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NJR stock traded up $0.45 on Monday, reaching $46.66. The stock had a trading volume of 935,035 shares, compared to its average volume of 626,977. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $45.37 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.94. NewJersey Resources has a 1 year low of $42.33 and a 1 year high of $51.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a current ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market cap of $4.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 0.64.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.06) by $0.12. NewJersey Resources had a return on equity of 17.25% and a net margin of 19.64%. The firm had revenue of $298.95 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $305.05 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned ($0.09) EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that NewJersey Resources will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

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.