Quest Partners LLC Reduces Position in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

Quest Partners LLC trimmed its position in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) by 27.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 9,794 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,795 shares during the quarter. Quest Partners LLC’s holdings in New Jersey Resources were worth $419,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. increased its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 2.8% in the first quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 9,357 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $402,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,840 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $378,000 after purchasing an additional 307 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,984 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $267,000 after purchasing an additional 389 shares during the period. Strategy Asset Managers LLC lifted its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 5.2% in the 1st quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 7,942 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $341,000 after buying an additional 390 shares during the period. Finally, Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 0.9% during the first quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 46,847 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,010,000 after buying an additional 416 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NJR has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of New Jersey Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday. Argus raised shares of New Jersey Resources to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, June 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 26,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.06, for a total value of $1,198,596.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 168,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,601,847.30. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 26,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.06, for a total value of $1,198,596.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 168,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,601,847.30. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 3,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The shares were 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

Shares of NJR stock opened at $47.63 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $45.55 and its 200 day moving average is $43.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The stock has a market cap of $4.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.83 and a beta of 0.59. New Jersey Resources Co. has a twelve month low of $38.92 and a twelve month high of $47.64.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $275.64 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 period in the prior year, the company earned $0.10 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This is an increase from New Jersey Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 23rd. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.78%. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.40%.

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.