New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.42

New Jersey Resources Co. (NYSE:NJR) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 18th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, June 12th will be given a dividend of 0.42 per share by the utilities provider on Monday, July 1st. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.87%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, June 12th.

New Jersey Resources has raised its dividend by an average of 7.9% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend every year for the last 28 years. New Jersey Resources has a dividend payout ratio of 58.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect New Jersey Resources to earn $2.88 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.68 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 58.3%.

New Jersey Resources Stock Performance

NYSE:NJR opened at $43.36 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.33, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $42.12 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $42.46. New Jersey Resources has a 1 year low of $38.92 and a 1 year high of $53.90. The company has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.77 and a beta of 0.64.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on NJR shares. StockNews.com raised New Jersey Resources from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Mizuho reduced their price target on New Jersey Resources from $47.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 5th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On New Jersey Resources

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Quarry LP bought a new stake in New Jersey Resources during the second quarter valued at $38,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 71.2% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 914 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 380 shares during the period. PCA Investment Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in New Jersey Resources during the second quarter valued at $73,000. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its stake in New Jersey Resources by 264.7% during the second quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $77,000 after buying an additional 1,191 shares during the period. Finally, Gotham Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in New Jersey Resources during the third quarter valued at $201,000. 70.98% of the stock is currently 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.