MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) Shares Gap Down – Here’s Why

MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) shares gapped down prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $20.24, but opened at $19.59. MDU Resources Group shares last traded at $19.5250, with a volume of 2,084,310 shares trading hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MDU has been the subject of a number of research reports. Zacks Research raised shares of MDU Resources Group from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday. Cowen started coverage on MDU Resources Group in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of MDU Resources Group in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen lowered MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on MDU Resources Group in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “hold” rating and a $20.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $21.00.

MDU Resources Group Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $3.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.19, a PEG ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.75. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $19.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $17.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.09 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.07 by $0.02. MDU Resources Group had a return on equity of 6.81% and a net margin of 9.02%.During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.32 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. MDU Resources Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.900-0.950 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MDU Resources Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.14 per share. This represents a $0.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 11th. MDU Resources Group’s payout ratio is presently 67.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MDU Resources Group

In other news, CFO Jason L. Vollmer purchased 5,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $16.07 per share, with a total value of $80,350.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief financial officer owned 344,548 shares in the company, valued at $5,536,886.36. This represents a 1.47% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of MDU Resources Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of MDU. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of MDU Resources Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $40,087,000. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. bought a new stake in MDU Resources Group during the second quarter valued at $26,098,000. River Road Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in MDU Resources Group during the second quarter valued at $26,105,000. Earnest Partners LLC purchased a new position in MDU Resources Group during the third quarter worth about $22,762,000. Finally, Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its stake in MDU Resources Group by 195.0% in the 1st quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,548,864 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,191,000 after acquiring an additional 1,023,864 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.44% of the company’s stock.

About MDU Resources Group

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.