NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Buy” by Analysts

NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR) has been assigned an average recommendation of “Buy” from the five research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $58.1667.

A number of brokerages have commented on NJR. Weiss Ratings raised shares of NewJersey Resources from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Wednesday. Argus set a $63.00 target price on shares of NewJersey Resources in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Williams Trading set a $55.00 target price on shares of NewJersey Resources in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of NewJersey Resources in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $63.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of NewJersey Resources from $54.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st.

NewJersey Resources Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NewJersey Resources stock opened at $55.23 on Friday. NewJersey Resources has a twelve month low of $43.46 and a twelve month high of $58.57. The company has a market cap of $5.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.39 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The company’s 50 day moving average is $55.94 and its 200 day moving average is $51.59.

NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last announced its earnings results on Monday, May 4th. The utilities provider reported $2.20 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.31. NewJersey Resources had a net margin of 15.67% and a return on equity of 14.58%. The business had revenue of $939.40 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $849.95 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. NewJersey Resources has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.480-3.630 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that NewJersey Resources will post 3.5 EPS for the current year.

NewJersey Resources Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be paid a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. NewJersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio is 56.38%.

Insider Transactions at NewJersey Resources

In other news, SVP Richard Reich sold 5,449 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.99, for a total value of $288,742.51. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 26,975 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,429,405.25. This represents a 16.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jane M. Kenny sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.10, for a total transaction of $448,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 21,998 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,234,087.80. This trade represents a 26.67% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 23,704 shares of company stock valued at $1,307,389. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of NewJersey Resources

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Groupe la Francaise grew its stake in NewJersey Resources by 5.2% during the first quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 8,506 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $467,000 after acquiring an additional 420 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in NewJersey Resources by 37.4% during the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 377,377 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $20,726,000 after acquiring an additional 102,730 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its stake in NewJersey Resources by 34.6% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 15,439 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $848,000 after acquiring an additional 3,967 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in NewJersey Resources by 25.2% during the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,391 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $76,000 after acquiring an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California State Teachers Retirement System grew its stake in NewJersey Resources by 17.4% during the first quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 112,540 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,181,000 after acquiring an additional 16,685 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About NewJersey Resources

New Jersey Resources Corporation is a publicly traded energy services holding company headquartered in Wall Township, New Jersey. The firm’s primary focus is on the safe and reliable distribution of natural gas, along with complementary energy services and renewable energy investments. Its operations center on delivering cost-effective solutions to residential, commercial and industrial customers throughout the state.

The company’s principal subsidiary, New Jersey Natural Gas, owns and operates an extensive pipeline network that spans northern, central and southern New Jersey.