Mizuho Boosts New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Price Target to $47.00

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) had its price objective boosted by research analysts at Mizuho from $45.00 to $47.00 in a report issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “neutral” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Mizuho’s target price points to a potential downside of 1.45% from the company’s previous close.

NJR has been the topic of a number of other reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on New Jersey Resources from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 15th. StockNews.com downgraded New Jersey Resources from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Finally, Argus raised shares of New Jersey Resources to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 10th.

New Jersey Resources Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NJR remained flat at $47.69 during midday trading on Friday. 340,560 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 495,540. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $45.96 and its 200 day moving average is $43.95. New Jersey Resources has a 52-week low of $38.92 and a 52-week high of $48.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.30. The stock has a market cap of $4.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.76 and a beta of 0.59.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported ($0.09) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($0.02) by ($0.07). The business had revenue of $275.64 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $283.56 million. New Jersey Resources had a net margin of 13.61% and a return on equity of 11.06%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.10 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that New Jersey Resources will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 26,600 shares of New Jersey Resources stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.06, for a total transaction of $1,198,596.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 168,705 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,601,847.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 26,600 shares of New Jersey Resources stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.06, for a total transaction of $1,198,596.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 168,705 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,601,847.30. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Stephen D. Westhoven sold 3,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, July 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.00, for a total transaction of $153,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 195,305 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,788,725. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources during the second quarter valued at approximately $620,000. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in New Jersey Resources in the 2nd quarter valued at $258,000. Creative Planning lifted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 5.7% in the 2nd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 20,033 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $856,000 after purchasing an additional 1,086 shares in the last quarter. Algert Global LLC boosted its holdings in shares of New Jersey Resources by 176.0% during the 2nd quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 185,637 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,934,000 after purchasing an additional 118,377 shares during the last quarter. Finally, The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in shares of New Jersey Resources by 0.5% during the second quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 119,574 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,111,000 after purchasing an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. 70.98% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

New Jersey Resources Company Profile

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.