Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Grows Position in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) by 6.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,894,826 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 119,665 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC’s holdings in MDU Resources Group were worth $47,750,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 16.1% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 6,181,092 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $122,386,000 after purchasing an additional 858,100 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in MDU Resources Group by 49.6% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 2,931,590 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $58,045,000 after buying an additional 972,540 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,561,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $50,710,000 after acquiring an additional 44,067 shares in the last quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC increased its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Frontier Capital Management Co. LLC now owns 2,141,514 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,402,000 after acquiring an additional 67,273 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of MDU Resources Group during the 4th quarter worth about $38,971,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.44% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at MDU Resources Group

In other MDU Resources Group news, insider Rob L. Johnson purchased 36,291 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $25.46 per share, for a total transaction of $923,968.86. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 41,934 shares in the company, valued at $1,067,639.64. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.59% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MDU shares. Argus raised MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $30.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, May 20th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 27th.

MDU Resources Group Stock Performance

NYSE MDU opened at $24.94 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $25.07 and a two-hundred day moving average of $22.75. The company has a market capitalization of $5.08 billion, a PE ratio of 10.66, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.77. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.04 and a 1 year high of $25.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 1.43 and a quick ratio of 1.37.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 2nd. The utilities provider reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $1.21 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.33 billion. MDU Resources Group had a return on equity of 11.42% and a net margin of 10.74%. The business’s revenue was down 15.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.23 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 1.55 earnings per share for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 13th were issued a $0.125 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 13th. This represents a $0.50 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.01%. MDU Resources Group’s payout ratio is 21.37%.

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.