Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. Makes New Investment in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. bought a new position in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 27,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $496,000.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Principal Securities Inc. grew its position in MDU Resources Group by 164.4% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,470 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 914 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 99.6% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 1,834 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 915 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in MDU Resources Group during the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 84.4% in the 4th quarter. Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. now owns 2,487 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 1,138 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in MDU Resources Group by 19.4% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,505 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $63,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Dennis W. Johnson purchased 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $16.64 per share, for a total transaction of $499,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 180,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,997,962.24. The trade was a 19.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 1.00% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MDU has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of MDU Resources Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $18.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com lowered shares of MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.00.

MDU Resources Group Trading Down 4.5 %

NYSE:MDU opened at $16.04 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.62, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.68. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $16.96 and its 200 day moving average price is $20.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.15. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $12.99 and a 52 week high of $20.39.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.03. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 7.31% and a return on equity of 10.20%. On average, research analysts forecast that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MDU Resources Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th were paid a $0.13 dividend. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 13th. MDU Resources Group’s payout ratio is 37.68%.

MDU Resources Group Profile

MDU Resources Group, Inc engages in the regulated energy delivery, and construction materials and services businesses in the United States. It operates through four segments: Electric, Natural Gas Distribution, Pipeline, and Construction Services. The Electric segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity for residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and operates 3,400 miles of transmission lines, 4,800 miles of distribution lines, and 82 transmission and 298 distribution substations.