New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) COO Patrick J. Migliaccio Sells 4,983 Shares

New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 4,983 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.00, for a total transaction of $229,218.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now directly owns 37,124 shares in the company, valued at $1,707,704. This trade represents a 11.83 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.

New Jersey Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:NJR opened at $46.52 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.93 and a beta of 0.63. The business has a 50 day moving average of $47.86 and a 200 day moving average of $46.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.31, a current ratio of 0.62 and a quick ratio of 0.36. New Jersey Resources Co. has a 1-year low of $39.44 and a 1-year high of $51.94.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.89. The firm had revenue of $395.78 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $406.97 million. New Jersey Resources had a net margin of 16.13% and a return on equity of 13.54%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 19.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.30 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that New Jersey Resources Co. will post 3.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

New Jersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a $0.45 dividend. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 11th. New Jersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 61.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of New Jersey Resources from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $52.00 to $54.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Guggenheim raised their price target on New Jersey Resources from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Mizuho lifted their price target on New Jersey Resources from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, September 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of New Jersey Resources from $51.00 to $54.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, New Jersey Resources currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $51.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of NJR. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources during the third quarter valued at approximately $27,000. FSA Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in New Jersey Resources in the 3rd quarter worth $27,000. Van ECK Associates Corp purchased a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources in the third quarter valued at about $52,000. Spirit of America Management Corp NY increased its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 140.0% in the third quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 1,200 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $57,000 after acquiring an additional 700 shares during the period. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of New Jersey Resources during the second quarter valued at about $76,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.