New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Receives $51.00 Average Target Price from Analysts

Shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the five ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, one has given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $51.00.

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NJR. Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com upgraded New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of New Jersey Resources from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $52.00 to $54.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other New Jersey Resources news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 4,983 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total transaction of $229,218.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 37,124 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,707,704. This trade represents a 11.83 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 3.6% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 8,840 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $378,000 after buying an additional 307 shares during the period. Good Life Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.0% during the third quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 34,316 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,620,000 after buying an additional 333 shares during the period. Creative Planning increased its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 20,514 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $968,000 after purchasing an additional 481 shares during the last quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC raised its stake in New Jersey Resources by 6.1% in the third quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 8,592 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $406,000 after buying an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 6.3% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 8,698 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $411,000 after acquiring an additional 515 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

New Jersey Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:NJR opened at $46.71 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.87 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.10. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.66 billion, a PE ratio of 16.00 and a beta of 0.63. New Jersey Resources has a 52-week low of $39.44 and a 52-week high of $51.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.62.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89. New Jersey Resources had a net margin of 16.13% and a return on equity of 13.54%. The business had revenue of $395.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $406.97 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.30 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that New Jersey Resources will post 3.1 EPS for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.85%. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.64%.

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.