MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) Shares Purchased by Trexquant Investment LP

Trexquant Investment LP grew its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group, Inc. (NYSE:MDU) by 809.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 243,843 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 217,026 shares during the quarter. Trexquant Investment LP’s holdings in MDU Resources Group were worth $4,394,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new position in MDU Resources Group during the fourth quarter worth about $778,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in MDU Resources Group by 42.2% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 115,907 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,089,000 after purchasing an additional 34,409 shares in the last quarter. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of MDU Resources Group by 21.3% during the 4th quarter. Cascade Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 81,626 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,471,000 after purchasing an additional 14,360 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in shares of MDU Resources Group by 32.3% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 855,493 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $23,449,000 after purchasing an additional 209,042 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Advisors Preferred LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MDU Resources Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,691,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered MDU Resources Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of MDU Resources Group in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $18.00 price objective for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $21.00.

MDU Resources Group Price Performance

MDU stock opened at $16.04 on Friday. MDU Resources Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $12.99 and a 52-week high of $20.39. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. The stock has a market cap of $3.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.68. The business has a fifty day moving average of $16.96 and a two-hundred day moving average of $20.09.

MDU Resources Group (NYSE:MDU) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by $0.03. MDU Resources Group had a return on equity of 10.20% and a net margin of 7.31%. As a group, research analysts anticipate that MDU Resources Group, Inc. will post 0.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MDU Resources Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 13th were issued a $0.13 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 13th. This represents a $0.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.24%. MDU Resources Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Dennis W. Johnson acquired 30,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $16.64 per share, for a total transaction of $499,200.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 180,166 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,997,962.24. This represents a 19.98 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.00% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

MDU Resources Group Company Profile

MDU Resources Group, Inc engages in the regulated energy delivery, and construction materials and services businesses in the United States. It operates through four segments: Electric, Natural Gas Distribution, Pipeline, and Construction Services. The Electric segment generates, transmits, and distributes electricity for residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming; and operates 3,400 miles of transmission lines, 4,800 miles of distribution lines, and 82 transmission and 298 distribution substations.