Kesler Norman & Wride LLC Trims Position in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR)

Kesler Norman & Wride LLC reduced its holdings in New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) by 21.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,827 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,633 shares during the period. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings in New Jersey Resources were worth $458,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in New Jersey Resources during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its stake in shares of New Jersey Resources by 9,400.0% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 665 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 658 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. grew its holdings in New Jersey Resources by 69.8% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 345 shares during the period. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC purchased a new position in New Jersey Resources during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. acquired a new position in New Jersey Resources in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NJR opened at $49.60 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.61 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $47.71 and a 200 day moving average of $47.43. The firm has a market cap of $4.97 billion, a PE ratio of 14.94 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.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.14 by $0.15. New Jersey Resources had a net margin of 18.25% and a return on equity of 15.72%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.74 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.22%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective 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. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of New Jersey Resources in a research report on Tuesday. They set a “hold” rating and a $51.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price 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. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $51.60.

Insider Transactions at New Jersey Resources

In other New Jersey Resources news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 1,173 shares of New Jersey Resources stock in a transaction on Monday, March 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.00, for a total transaction of $58,650.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 22,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,132,450. The trade was a 4.92 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

About New Jersey Resources

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.