Arizona State Retirement System Purchases 646 Shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

Arizona State Retirement System raised its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) by 2.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,520 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 646 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System’s holdings in New Jersey Resources were worth $1,176,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Cox Capital Mgt LLC increased its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 180.8% in the 1st quarter. Cox Capital Mgt LLC now owns 75,647 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,246,000 after acquiring an additional 48,703 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC lifted its position in New Jersey Resources by 20.2% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 172,271 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,680,000 after buying an additional 28,953 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in New Jersey Resources in the 1st quarter worth approximately $19,337,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in New Jersey Resources by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,897,288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $530,381,000 after purchasing an additional 332,420 shares during the last quarter. Finally, State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System lifted its position in New Jersey Resources by 41.8% in the first quarter. State Board of Administration of Florida Retirement System now owns 48,031 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,061,000 after purchasing an additional 14,150 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

New Jersey Resources Stock Up 0.3 %

NYSE NJR opened at $46.44 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.60. The company has a market capitalization of $4.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.36 and a beta of 0.59. New Jersey Resources Co. has a one year low of $38.92 and a one year high of $47.37. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $45.44 and a 200-day moving average price of $43.73.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported ($0.09) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.07). The company had revenue of $275.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $283.56 million. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 11.06% and a net margin of 13.61%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 23rd. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.88%. This is a positive change from New Jersey Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.40%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 3,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $153,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 195,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,788,725. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 26,600 shares of New Jersey Resources stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.06, for a total transaction of $1,198,596.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 168,705 shares in the company, valued at $7,601,847.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 3,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $153,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 195,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,788,725. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on NJR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com cut New Jersey Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. Finally, Argus raised New Jersey Resources to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, June 10th.

New Jersey Resources 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.