New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $48.76 and last traded at $48.74, with a volume of 305594 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $48.45.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on NJR shares. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $47.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $49.00.

New Jersey Resources Stock Up 0.6 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $4.83 billion, a PE ratio of 20.27 and a beta of 0.59. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $46.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $45.15. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.69%. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.31%.

Institutional Trading of New Jersey Resources

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,366,381 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $111,714,000 after acquiring an additional 34,782 shares during the period. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 140.0% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 189,827 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,959,000 after purchasing an additional 110,723 shares in the last quarter. MML Investors Services LLC lifted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 14.5% during the third quarter. MML Investors Services LLC now owns 8,621 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $407,000 after buying an additional 1,093 shares in the last quarter. iSAM Funds UK Ltd purchased a new stake in New Jersey Resources during the third quarter valued at about $574,000. Finally, Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 1.9% during the third quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 186,138 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,786,000 after buying an additional 3,466 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About New Jersey Resources

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.