Jane Street Group LLC Has $4.82 Million Stock Holdings in Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX)

Jane Street Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) by 751.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 91,530 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 80,779 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC’s holdings in Middlesex Water were worth $4,817,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in Middlesex Water by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 19,863 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,045,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of Middlesex Water by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 7,474 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $393,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in Middlesex Water by 771.9% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 497 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 440 shares during the period. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co increased its stake in Middlesex Water by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co now owns 20,614 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,081,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Middlesex Water by 1,006.4% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 520 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 473 shares during the last quarter. 79.52% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Middlesex Water Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of MSEX stock opened at $60.09 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $1.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.13, a PEG ratio of 1.50 and a beta of 0.88. Middlesex Water has a 52-week low of $48.18 and a 52-week high of $70.73. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $61.88 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.57.

Middlesex Water (NASDAQ:MSEX) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $44.30 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $43.79 million. Middlesex Water had a net margin of 22.53% and a return on equity of 9.58%. Research analysts anticipate that Middlesex Water will post 2.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Middlesex Water Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.34 per share. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. Middlesex Water’s payout ratio is 56.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Dennis W. Doll sold 4,067 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $60.05, for a total transaction of $244,223.35. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 52,112 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,129,325.60. This trade represents a 7.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.32% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on MSEX. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Middlesex Water from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $61.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Baird R W upgraded Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. StockNews.com lowered Middlesex Water from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Middlesex Water in a report on Friday, April 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating, one has issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $58.50.

About Middlesex Water

Middlesex Water Company owns and operates regulated water utility and wastewater systems. It operates in Regulated and Non-Regulated segments. The Regulated segment collects, treats, and distributes water on a retail and wholesale basis to residential, commercial, industrial, and fire protection customers, as well as provides regulated wastewater systems in New Jersey and Delaware.