--- title: "Double-Digit Upside Plus a Dividend Bonus: J.P. Morgan Turns Bullish on These 2 Stocks" type: "News" locale: "en" url: "https://longbridge.com/en/news/295388695.md" description: "J.P. Morgan strategists have turned bullish on MDU Resources Group (MDU), upgrading it to Overweight with a $27 price target, citing double-digit upside potential and a 2.7% dividend yield. Analysts highlight the improving visibility of the Bakken East pipeline project, strong commercial momentum, and robust capital expenditure as key drivers for future EPS growth. Despite Q2 earnings slightly missing top-line forecasts, the company beat EPS expectations, reinforcing the firm's positive outlook on its long-term fundamentals." datetime: "2026-08-10T09:59:00.000Z" locales: - [zh-CN](https://longbridge.com/zh-CN/news/295388695.md) - [en](https://longbridge.com/en/news/295388695.md) - [zh-HK](https://longbridge.com/zh-HK/news/295388695.md) generator: "portal-rs" --- # Double-Digit Upside Plus a Dividend Bonus: J.P. Morgan Turns Bullish on These 2 Stocks The stock market has had plenty thrown at it this year, from the conflict with Iran and higher energy costs to stubborn inflation and uncertainty over where interest rates go next. Yet, the economic damage investors might have expected has largely failed to materialize, helping stocks reach new all-time highs despite those challenges. ### Claim 55% Off TipRanks - Unlock powerful investing tools with TipRanks Premium to make smarter, more confident investment decisions - Subscribe to TipRanks Smart Investor Newsletter, and discover new investing opportunities with data-backed stock picks Much of that resilience comes down to healthy corporate earnings, solid economic growth, and massive demand for AI that continues to support the tech sector while offering the potential for broader productivity gains. For J.P. Morgan strategist Kriti Gupta, those fundamentals matter far more than the risks that have dominated the market's attention. "We're looking at double-digit returns again this year. And there's still so much to go… We're not seeing hits to economic growth that would justify a larger pullback in the stock market at this stage," Gupta noted. With that kind of backdrop, J.P. Morgan's stock analysts see opportunities worth chasing. They have recently turned bullish on two stocks offering double-digit upside potential, with a dividend adding a little extra to the equation. Does the rest of Wall Street share their enthusiasm? We dug into the latest data from the TipRanks platform to find out. **MDU Resources Group (MDU)** We'll start in the utility sector – a sector long known for providing solid dividends. MDU Resources Group operates in the northern tier of the 'Lower 48,' providing a range of services including electric utilities, natural gas distribution, and natural gas storage and pipeline transport. The company was founded in North Dakota in 1924, as a small, local electric utility, and is one of that state's oldest publicly traded companies. The company's utility delivery business rests on both electricity and natural gas. MDU Resources, through several subsidiary firms, delivers natural gas and electrical power to more than 1.2 million customers in 8 states, from Washington and Oregon east to Minnesota. Included in this part of MDU's business are natural gas and electric distribution systems as well as electric power generating stations. The company's pipeline network focuses on the transport of natural gas across five states – Minnesota, North and South Dakota, Wyoming, and Montana. The pipelines include natural gas transmission and interconnecting systems, and total some 3,800 miles. MDU's natural gas pipeline business also includes important storage fields and 14 connecting points with other pipeline providers, linking the company's system into the larger national network. The company's natural gas transportation capacity is rated at 2.9 bcf/day. One key project to watch here is the Bakken East pipeline project, a natural gas pipeline in the planning and application stages through MDU's subsidiary WBI Energy. The project includes a 374-mile pipeline in North Dakota, running from Watford City to Fargo and moving natural gas from the eastern reaches of the Bakken formation, in western North Dakota, to the eastern parts of the state. Progress on the application continues, with filing expected in 4Q26. MDU expects that Phase One of the project will come online late in 2029, with Phase Two coming online one year later. Looking at MDU's last quarterly release, which covered 2Q26, we see that the company reported a top line of $375.2 million, up almost 7% year-over-year – but missing the forecast by $21.36 million. At the bottom line, the company reported a GAAP EPS of 10 cents, beating expectations by 2 cents per share. The Q2 results were released earlier this month, but back in May the company declared its last dividend. That payment, set at $0.14 per common share, was paid out on July 1. The annualized dividend payment of $0.56 per common share provides a forward yield of 2.7%. For JPM analyst Aidan Kelly, the appeal comes down to MDU's improving Bakken East visibility, strong commercial momentum, and the growth those developments could unlock. "We see attractive upside potential under improving Bakken East project visibility and relatively modest Street expectations. Essentially, we view the company's strong commercial momentum to date and robust capex estimate as affirmative signals behind the project's long-term fundamentals. Upon successful construction and financing, we see MDU comfortably positioned to deliver double-digit EPS CAGR in the back half of the plan before contemplating incremental data center lateral opportunities. As such, we view the current price as offering a uniquely attractive risk/reward skew into an improving growth story," Kelly opined. Following his positive view of the stock, Kelly upgraded MDU from Neutral to Overweight (i.e., Buy), while assigning a $27 price target that suggests a one-year upside potential of 31%. (To watch Kelly's track record, click here) Zoom out from Kelly's call, and the Street is leaning heavily in the same direction. MDU has picked up 4 Buys from its 5 recent analyst reviews, versus a single Hold, enough for a Strong Buy consensus rating. The stock is currently trading for $20.55 and its $24.25 average target price implies a gain of 18% over the coming year. 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