New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Lowered to “Sell” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com lowered shares of New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report released on Saturday.

A number of other equities analysts have also issued reports on NJR. Argus raised shares of New Jersey Resources to a strong-buy rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a neutral rating in a report on Thursday, August 15th.

New Jersey Resources Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NJR stock opened at $48.02 on Friday. New Jersey Resources has a 1 year low of $38.92 and a 1 year high of $48.68. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $45.79 and its 200 day simple moving average is $43.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.98 and a beta of 0.59. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30.

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

New Jersey Resources Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 23rd will be issued a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 23rd. This is a positive change from New Jersey Resources’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. New Jersey Resources’s payout ratio is 71.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling at New Jersey Resources

In other New Jersey Resources news, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 26,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.06, for a total value of $1,198,596.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 168,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,601,847.30. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other news, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 3,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, July 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total value of $153,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 195,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,788,725. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 26,600 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.06, for a total transaction of $1,198,596.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 168,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,601,847.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in New Jersey Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at about $620,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in New Jersey Resources during the 2nd quarter valued at about $258,000. Creative Planning lifted its position in New Jersey Resources by 5.7% during the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 20,033 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $856,000 after purchasing an additional 1,086 shares during the period. Algert Global LLC lifted its position in New Jersey Resources by 176.0% during the 2nd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 185,637 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,934,000 after purchasing an additional 118,377 shares during the period. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company lifted its position in New Jersey Resources by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 119,574 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,111,000 after purchasing an additional 570 shares during the period. 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.