Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Purchases 143,442 Shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its position in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) by 27.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 672,323 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 143,442 shares during the quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P’s holdings in MDU Resources Group were worth $12,115,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 16.6% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 22,997,452 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $414,414,000 after buying an additional 3,276,114 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 6,344,185 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $174,713,000 after acquiring an additional 114,719 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 3,719,543 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $101,978,000 after acquiring an additional 65,433 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of 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 valued at $39,272,000 after acquiring an additional 96,889 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennessy Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 1,098.5% in the 4th quarter. Hennessy Advisors Inc. now owns 2,155,007 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,833,000 after purchasing an additional 1,975,200 shares during the period. 71.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at MDU Resources Group

In related news, Director Dennis W. Johnson acquired 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $16.64 per share, with a total value of $499,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 180,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,997,962.24. The trade was a 19.98 % increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MDU has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on MDU Resources Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They set a “hold” rating and a $18.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com lowered MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.00.

MDU Resources Group Price Performance

Shares of MDU stock opened at $16.67 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $12.99 and a 12-month high of $20.39. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $17.11 and a 200-day moving average of $20.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.81.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.03. MDU Resources Group had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 7.31%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.12%. MDU Resources Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.68%.

MDU Resources Group Company Profile

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.