NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) Cut to Sell at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Sunday morning.

NJR has been the subject of a number of other reports. Mizuho raised NewJersey Resources from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $51.00 to $54.00 in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of NewJersey Resources in a report on Monday, December 22nd. Raymond James Financial restated an “outperform” rating and set a $53.00 target price on shares of NewJersey Resources in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, New Street Research set a $54.00 price target on shares of NewJersey Resources in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $52.86.

NewJersey Resources Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of NYSE:NJR opened at $46.35 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 0.73 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market cap of $4.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.92 and a beta of 0.61. The company has a 50 day moving average of $46.17 and a 200-day moving average of $46.27. NewJersey Resources has a one year low of $43.46 and a one year high of $50.76.

NewJersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 19th. The utilities provider reported $0.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.15 by $0.01. NewJersey Resources had a net margin of 16.48% and a return on equity of 13.73%. The business had revenue of $336.08 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $307.30 million. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.89 earnings per share. NewJersey Resources’s revenue was down 15.1% compared to the same quarter last year. NewJersey Resources has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.030-3.180 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that NewJersey Resources will post 3.15 earnings per share for the current year.

NewJersey Resources Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 12th will be given a dividend of $0.475 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 12th. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. NewJersey Resources’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.06%.

Insider Activity at NewJersey Resources

In related news, COO Patrick J. Migliaccio sold 4,017 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.46, for a total value of $186,629.82. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 38,065 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,768,499.90. The trade was a 9.55% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NJR. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in NewJersey Resources by 633.7% during the 1st quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 4,549 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $223,000 after buying an additional 3,929 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in NewJersey Resources during the first quarter worth about $8,907,000. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in NewJersey Resources during the first quarter valued at approximately $270,000. Energy Income Partners LLC boosted its position in NewJersey Resources by 4.2% during the first quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC now owns 324,997 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $15,944,000 after purchasing an additional 13,114 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Graham Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in NewJersey Resources by 230.9% in the first quarter. Graham Capital Management L.P. now owns 32,520 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,595,000 after purchasing an additional 22,692 shares in the last quarter. 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.