New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Earns Hold Rating from Analysts at Jefferies Financial Group

Equities research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage set a “hold” rating and a $51.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 2.82% from the company’s current price.

NJR has been the topic of several other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com upgraded New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $51.60.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

Shares of NJR stock opened at $49.60 on Tuesday. New Jersey Resources has a twelve month low of $40.62 and a twelve month high of $51.95. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $47.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.94 and a beta of 0.57.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.15. New Jersey Resources had a net margin of 18.25% and a return on equity of 15.72%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.74 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that New Jersey Resources will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at New Jersey Resources

In related news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.58, for a total transaction of $113,968.68. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,822 shares in the company, valued at $1,157,272.76. The trade was a 8.97 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NJR. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the fourth quarter valued at about $73,124,000. Millennium Management LLC grew its position in New Jersey Resources by 66.0% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 1,363,495 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $63,607,000 after purchasing an additional 542,089 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its stake in New Jersey Resources by 3,076.5% during the 4th quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 321,332 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,990,000 after purchasing an additional 311,216 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 7.0% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,309,166 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $154,372,000 after buying an additional 216,000 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 18.5% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,350,358 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $62,994,000 after buying an additional 210,538 shares during the period. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.