New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Given New $51.00 Price Target at Wells Fargo & Company

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) had its price objective raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $47.00 to $51.00 in a research report report published on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, September 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $49.00.

New Jersey Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:NJR opened at $47.63 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $46.17 and its 200-day moving average is $44.51. New Jersey Resources has a 1-year low of $39.44 and a 1-year high of $48.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The stock has a market cap of $4.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.83 and a beta of 0.59.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported ($0.09) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.02) by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $275.64 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $283.56 million. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 11.06% and a net margin of 13.61%. The company’s revenue was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.10 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that New Jersey Resources will post 2.95 earnings per share for the current year.

New Jersey Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 23rd were given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, September 23rd. This is a positive change from New Jersey Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.78%. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.15%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 11,897,288 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $530,381,000 after purchasing an additional 332,420 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,956,772 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $126,372,000 after buying an additional 154,441 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,284,245 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $54,889,000 after acquiring an additional 40,094 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 917,203 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $39,357,000 after acquiring an additional 8,843 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 12.7% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 819,693 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,542,000 after acquiring an additional 92,152 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

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.