Cladis Investment Advisory LLC Lowers Stake in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Cladis Investment Advisory LLC cut its stake in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 74,924 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,299 shares during the quarter. MDU Resources Group comprises about 1.4% of Cladis Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 17th largest position. Cladis Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings in MDU Resources Group were worth $2,054,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 8.1% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 7,491,990 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $188,049,000 after acquiring an additional 563,424 shares during the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC lifted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 40.9% in the second quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 6,048,344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $151,813,000 after purchasing an additional 1,756,530 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 30.7% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,158,224 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $104,371,000 after purchasing an additional 977,487 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in MDU Resources Group by 5.1% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,082,468 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,080,000 after buying an additional 101,955 shares during the period. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 1.9% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,782,538 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $48,859,000 after buying an additional 33,982 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MDU has been the subject of several analyst reports. Bank of America upgraded MDU Resources Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $31.00 to $17.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on shares of MDU Resources Group in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Finally, Siebert Williams Shank raised shares of MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $19.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, November 4th.

MDU Resources Group Price Performance

MDU opened at $20.04 on Monday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $24.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $24.93. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $14.91 and a 52-week high of $30.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.09 billion, a PE ratio of 10.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.76. 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 (NYSE:MDU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $1.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $969.17 million. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 8.92% and a return on equity of 11.24%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.29 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 1.13 EPS for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 12th. This represents a $0.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. MDU Resources Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.67%.

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.