Xponance Inc. Buys 1,663 Shares of New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

Xponance Inc. increased its stake in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) by 12.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,022 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,663 shares during the quarter. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in New Jersey Resources were worth $701,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of NJR. Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 110.5% in the third quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 18,897 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $892,000 after buying an additional 9,918 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in New Jersey Resources by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,227,815 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,953,000 after acquiring an additional 33,772 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. lifted its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 153.1% during the third quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 93,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,431,000 after purchasing an additional 56,789 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd boosted its position in New Jersey Resources by 247.5% during the third quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd now owns 31,646 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,494,000 after purchasing an additional 22,538 shares during the period. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the third quarter worth about $1,001,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

New Jersey Resources Stock Down 0.0 %

NJR opened at $48.48 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.60 and a beta of 0.57. New Jersey Resources Co. has a one year low of $40.62 and a one year high of $51.95. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $47.46 and a 200-day moving average price of $47.33. 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 (NYSE:NJR) last posted its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.14 by $0.15. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 18.25%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.74 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.22%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently commented on NJR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of 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 raised New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on New Jersey Resources from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $51.75.

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.