Cerity Partners LLC Purchases Shares of 35,432 MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Cerity Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund acquired 35,432 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $702,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Graham Capital Management L.P. bought a new stake in MDU Resources Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $958,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 986.4% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 532,361 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,424,000 after purchasing an additional 483,358 shares in the last quarter. Oak Thistle LLC grew its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 248.4% during the fourth quarter. Oak Thistle LLC now owns 56,077 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,110,000 after purchasing an additional 39,980 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of MDU Resources Group by 48.7% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,585,707 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $70,208,000 after buying an additional 1,174,799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Inspire Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 4.5% in the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 15,689 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $307,000 after buying an additional 672 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.44% of the company’s stock.

MDU Resources Group Price Performance

MDU opened at $24.50 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.27 and a quick ratio of 1.19. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.78. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $23.02 and its 200-day simple moving average is $20.57. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a one year low of $18.04 and a one year high of $25.78.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 8th. The utilities provider reported $0.48 EPS for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $1.14 billion for the quarter. MDU Resources Group had a return on equity of 8.84% and a net margin of 8.35%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 1.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MDU Resources Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.04%. MDU Resources Group’s payout ratio is 24.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of MDU Resources Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd.

MDU Resources Group Company 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.