New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Stock Rating Lowered by StockNews.com

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) was downgraded by investment analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report issued on Wednesday.

Separately, Mizuho dropped their target price on New Jersey Resources from $47.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 5th.

New Jersey Resources Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NJR traded down $0.65 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $44.20. 519,547 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 508,981. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $42.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $42.65. New Jersey Resources has a 1-year low of $38.92 and a 1-year high of $50.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33. The firm has a market cap of $4.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.11 and a beta of 0.62.

New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.74 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $467.20 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $812.66 million. New Jersey Resources had a net margin of 13.96% and a return on equity of 11.13%. The firm’s revenue was down 35.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.14 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that New Jersey Resources will post 2.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Fortitude Family Office LLC acquired a new stake in New Jersey Resources in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in New Jersey Resources in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new position in New Jersey Resources during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Heritage Wealth Advisors acquired a new position in New Jersey Resources during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of New Jersey Resources in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 70.98% of the company’s stock.

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.