Geode Capital Management LLC Sells 14,135 Shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

Geode Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,352,246 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 14,135 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.35% of New Jersey Resources worth $109,755,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NJR. Arizona State Retirement System grew its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 28,781 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,343,000 after buying an additional 325 shares during the period. Good Life Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Good Life Advisors LLC now owns 34,643 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,616,000 after buying an additional 327 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 69.8% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC boosted its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Greenwood Capital Associates LLC now owns 25,522 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,191,000 after buying an additional 383 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 122,953 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,736,000 after buying an additional 408 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on NJR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on New Jersey Resources from $54.00 to $52.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com upgraded New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. New Street Research set a $51.00 price objective on New Jersey Resources in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on New Jersey Resources in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They issued a “hold” rating and a $51.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.50.

Insider Transactions at New Jersey Resources

In other news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 1,173 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total value of $58,650.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 22,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,132,450. This represents a 4.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

New Jersey Resources Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NJR stock opened at $47.50 on Thursday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $47.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $47.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.61. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 1 year low of $40.62 and a 1 year high of $51.95. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.31 and a beta of 0.58.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.74 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were issued a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.79%. New Jersey Resources’s payout ratio is currently 54.22%.

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.