New Jersey Resources Co. (NJR) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.45 on July 1st

New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, April 16th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 10th will be given a dividend of 0.45 per share by the utilities provider on Tuesday, July 1st. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.03%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 10th.

New Jersey Resources has a payout ratio of 57.7% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect New Jersey Resources to earn $3.12 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.80 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 57.7%.

New Jersey Resources Stock Up 0.0%

New Jersey Resources stock opened at $44.66 on Friday. New Jersey Resources has a fifty-two week low of $41.68 and a fifty-two week high of $51.95. 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 company has a market capitalization of $4.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.45 and a beta of 0.62. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $47.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $47.67.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $913.03 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $732.00 million. New Jersey Resources had a return on equity of 15.72% and a net margin of 18.25%. The firm’s revenue was up 38.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.41 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that New Jersey Resources will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at New Jersey Resources

In other news, CFO Roberto Bel sold 2,346 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.58, for a total transaction of $113,968.68. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 23,822 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,157,272.76. This represents a 8.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 65.7% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 22,214 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,090,000 after acquiring an additional 8,808 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 59,363 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,912,000 after acquiring an additional 3,422 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources in the 1st quarter worth approximately $8,907,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 10.1% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 320,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $15,705,000 after acquiring an additional 29,458 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on New Jersey Resources in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. They set a “hold” rating and a $51.00 price objective for the company. Wall Street Zen raised New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Mizuho reduced their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $52.00 to $50.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on New Jersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Five investment 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $51.67.

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.