New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note published on Friday morning.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Mizuho raised their target price on New Jersey Resources from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.00.

New Jersey Resources Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE NJR opened at $46.82 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.59 and a beta of 0.59. The business’s fifty day moving average is $46.51 and its 200-day moving average is $44.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a current ratio of 0.60 and a quick ratio of 0.41. New Jersey Resources has a one year low of $39.44 and a one year high of $48.68.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.84%. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 75.31%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp lifted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 2.0% in the first quarter. Texas Permanent School Fund Corp now owns 85,930 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,687,000 after purchasing an additional 1,650 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the first quarter worth $1,635,000. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 2,652.8% in the first quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 89,631 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,846,000 after purchasing an additional 86,375 shares during the last quarter. Swiss National Bank grew its position in New Jersey Resources by 0.4% during the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 193,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,282,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the period. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 5.5% during the 1st quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 24,292 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,042,000 after buying an additional 1,257 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

New Jersey 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.