Jefferies Financial Group Upgrades MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) to Buy

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Friday, September 19th, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm presently has a $20.00 price objective on the utilities provider’s stock. Jefferies Financial Group’s price target suggests a potential upside of 14.45% from the company’s current price.

Separately, Wall Street Zen downgraded MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $18.67.

MDU Resources Group Stock Performance

MDU stock traded up $0.42 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $17.48. The stock had a trading volume of 1,680,839 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,738,832. The stock has a market cap of $3.57 billion, a PE ratio of 16.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 0.74. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $16.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $16.73. MDU Resources Group has a 52-week low of $14.91 and a 52-week high of $30.52.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.07 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.13 by ($0.06). MDU Resources Group had a return on equity of 8.29% and a net margin of 8.25%.The company had revenue of $351.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $315.67 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.32 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. MDU Resources Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 0.880-0.950 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that MDU Resources Group will post 0.94 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CFO Jason L. Vollmer purchased 5,000 shares of MDU Resources Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $16.07 per share, with a total value of $80,350.00. Following the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 344,548 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,536,886.36. The trade was a 1.47% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. BNP Paribas Financial Markets lifted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 38.9% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 34,459 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $621,000 after acquiring an additional 9,652 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 535,928 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,657,000 after acquiring an additional 4,461 shares during the last quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 24.1% in the fourth quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 64,163 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,156,000 after acquiring an additional 12,451 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG lifted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 115.8% in the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 69,603 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,254,000 after acquiring an additional 37,355 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Lazard Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in MDU Resources Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $156,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.44% of the company’s stock.

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.