StockNews.com Upgrades New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) to “Hold”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

A number of other equities analysts also recently commented on NJR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on 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. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of New Jersey Resources from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $49.00.

New Jersey Resources Stock Up 1.6 %

NYSE NJR opened at $47.56 on Friday. New Jersey Resources has a 52 week low of $39.44 and a 52 week high of $48.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $46.51 and its 200-day simple moving average is $44.97. The firm has a market cap of $4.72 billion, a PE ratio of 19.90 and a beta of 0.59.

New Jersey Resources Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Shareholders 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 yield of 3.78%. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 75.31%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources during the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management purchased a new position in New Jersey Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in New Jersey Resources by 119.5% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,214 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 661 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp purchased a new position in New Jersey Resources in the 3rd quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, Spirit of America Management Corp NY boosted its position in New Jersey Resources by 140.0% in the 3rd quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 1,200 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is currently 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.