Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS Has $784,000 Stock Position in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS cut its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,527 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,417 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS’s holdings in MDU Resources Group were worth $784,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Principal Securities Inc. grew its position in MDU Resources Group by 164.4% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,470 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 914 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 99.6% during the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 1,834 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 915 shares in the last quarter. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in MDU Resources Group during the fourth quarter valued at $39,000. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in MDU Resources Group by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,505 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 570 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Millburn Ridgefield Corp purchased a new stake in shares of MDU Resources Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $82,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.44% of the company’s stock.

MDU Resources Group Stock Down 0.1 %

MDU opened at $16.79 on Thursday. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $12.99 and a twelve month high of $20.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.15. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $17.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $20.54. The firm has a market cap of $3.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.81.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.31 by $0.03. MDU Resources Group had a net margin of 7.31% and a return on equity of 10.20%. Research analysts forecast that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 EPS for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 13th will be given a dividend of $0.13 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. MDU Resources Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on MDU Resources Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $18.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com lowered shares of MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $21.00.

Insider Activity at MDU Resources Group

In other MDU Resources Group news, Director Dennis W. Johnson purchased 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 10th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $16.64 per share, for a total transaction of $499,200.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 180,166 shares in the company, valued at $2,997,962.24. This represents a 19.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.