NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven brokerages that are covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $59.42.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $57.50 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Guggenheim upgraded shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays increased their target price on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded NorthWestern Energy Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th.

NorthWestern Energy Group Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE NWE opened at $54.13 on Friday. NorthWestern Energy Group has a fifty-two week low of $46.15 and a fifty-two week high of $57.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.45 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $53.47 and its 200 day simple moving average is $53.99.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($0.05). The company had revenue of $345.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $344.06 million. NorthWestern Energy Group had a net margin of 15.15% and a return on equity of 7.95%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. On average, analysts predict that NorthWestern Energy Group will post 3.39 EPS for the current year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 13th were issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 700 shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.57, for a total value of $37,499.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 10,888 shares in the company, valued at $583,270.16. This trade represents a 6.04 % decrease 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. Also, Director Anthony Thomas Clark sold 7,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.95, for a total transaction of $384,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $873,591.20. This trade represents a 30.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. S.A. Mason LLC bought a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 29.3% in the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 883 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About NorthWestern Energy Group

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc provides electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and various industrial customers. It generates, purchases, transmits, and distributes electricity; and produces, purchases, stores, transmits, and distributes natural gas, as well as owns municipal franchises to provide natural gas service in the communities.