40,100 Shares in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Acquired by KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 40,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,885,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NJR. Intech Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 110.5% in the 3rd quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 18,897 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $892,000 after purchasing an additional 9,918 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 2.8% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,227,815 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $57,953,000 after buying an additional 33,772 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. grew its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 153.1% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 93,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,431,000 after buying an additional 56,789 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at about $1,001,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets increased its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 30.3% in the 3rd quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 48,624 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,295,000 after acquiring an additional 11,319 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

New Jersey Resources Stock Up 0.3 %

New Jersey Resources stock opened at $48.41 on Friday. New Jersey Resources Co. has a twelve month low of $40.62 and a twelve month high of $51.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company has a 50 day moving average of $47.55 and a 200-day moving average of $47.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.85 billion, a PE ratio of 14.58 and a beta of 0.57.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.15. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 18.25%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.74 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.72%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 11th. New Jersey Resources’s payout ratio is 54.22%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on NJR shares. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, StockNews.com raised New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.75.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other New Jersey Resources news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of New Jersey Resources stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.58, for a total value of $113,968.68. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,822 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,157,272.76. The trade was a 8.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

About New Jersey Resources

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.