NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR) Receives Average Rating of "Hold" from Brokerages

NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) has been assigned an average recommendation of "Hold" from the six brokerages that are covering the company, Marketbeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $51.29.

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on NJR shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on NewJersey Resources in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a "hold" rating and a $51.00 price objective for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on NewJersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. New Street Research set a $51.00 price objective on NewJersey Resources in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Wall Street Zen raised NewJersey Resources from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their target price on NewJersey Resources from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 15th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other NewJersey Resources news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 1,500 shares of NewJersey Resources stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,578,211.80. The trade was a 4.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.72% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NewJersey Resources

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NJR. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in NewJersey Resources during the 1st quarter valued at about $37,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of NewJersey Resources by 42.0% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the last quarter. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of NewJersey Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $51,000. Brooklyn Investment Group boosted its stake in shares of NewJersey Resources by 1,715.4% in the 1st quarter. Brooklyn Investment Group now owns 1,416 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 1,338 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of NewJersey Resources by 6,245.8% in the 4th 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 and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company's stock.

NewJersey Resources Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:NJR traded down $0.28 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $45.73. 560,913 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 553,237. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.10 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. NewJersey Resources has a one year low of $42.33 and a one year high of $51.95. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $45.64 and a 200 day simple moving average of $46.98.

NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.11. NewJersey Resources had a return on equity of 16.95% and a net margin of 20.03%. The firm had revenue of $913.03 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $732.00 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.41 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 38.8% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that NewJersey Resources will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NewJersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 10th were given a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.94%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, June 10th. NewJersey Resources's payout ratio is 43.69%.

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.