NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Rating Increased to Hold at Wall Street Zen

NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) was upgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report released on Saturday.

Several other research firms also recently weighed in on NJR. Raymond James Financial reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $50.00 target price (up from $49.00) on shares of NewJersey Resources in a research report on Friday, August 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on NewJersey Resources from $56.00 to $51.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.43.

NewJersey Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NJR opened at $47.16 on Friday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $46.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $46.98. NewJersey Resources has a 12 month low of $43.80 and a 12 month high of $51.94. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.53 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.25, a current ratio of 0.76 and a quick ratio of 0.48.

NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $0.06 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.06) by $0.12. The business had revenue of $298.95 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $305.05 million. NewJersey Resources had a return on equity of 17.08% and a net margin of 19.64%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.09) EPS. Analysts expect that NewJersey Resources will post 3.15 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at NewJersey Resources

In other NewJersey Resources news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 1,500 shares of NewJersey Resources stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.22, for a total transaction of $66,330.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 35,690 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,578,211.80. The trade was a 4.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.72% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NewJersey Resources

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its holdings in shares of NewJersey Resources by 153.0% in the second quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 754 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 456 shares during the period. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of NewJersey Resources during the first quarter worth about $37,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in NewJersey Resources by 42.0% in the first quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 839 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 248 shares during the period. Ameriflex Group Inc. purchased a new stake in NewJersey Resources in the fourth quarter worth about $51,000. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in NewJersey Resources by 259.1% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,203 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 868 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

About NewJersey 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.