NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Hits New 52-Week High – Time to Buy?

NewJersey Resources Corporation (NYSE:NJR) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $58.57 and last traded at $58.2410, with a volume of 658955 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $57.62.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NJR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of NewJersey Resources in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on NewJersey Resources in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $63.00 target price on the stock. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating on shares of NewJersey Resources in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Mizuho boosted their target price on NewJersey Resources from $54.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded NewJersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and four have given a Buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $57.14.

NewJersey Resources Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $5.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.96 and a beta of 0.51. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $55.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $51.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.94.

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

NewJersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 10th will be paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 10th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.3%. NewJersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.38%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NewJersey Resources news, SVP Richard Reich sold 5,449 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was 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 owned 26,975 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,429,405.25. This trade represents a 16.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $55.84, for a total value of $167,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 35,202 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,965,679.68. This represents a 7.85% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 22,554 shares of company stock worth $1,241,448 in the last 90 days. 0.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of NewJersey Resources

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of NewJersey Resources by 5.3% in the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,141,330 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $227,447,000 after acquiring an additional 207,165 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of NewJersey Resources by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,629,373 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $121,285,000 after acquiring an additional 10,448 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in shares of NewJersey Resources by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 1,335,344 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $64,297,000 after acquiring an additional 14,512 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of NewJersey Resources in the 4th quarter worth approximately $60,075,000. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its position in shares of NewJersey Resources by 19.4% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 1,283,533 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $59,197,000 after acquiring an additional 208,388 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

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.