NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) Hits New 52-Week High on Analyst Upgrade

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday after Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on the stock from $58.00 to $61.00. Wells Fargo & Company currently has an overweight rating on the stock. NorthWestern Energy Group traded as high as $60.76 and last traded at $60.76, with a volume of 295 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $56.99.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America started coverage on NorthWestern Energy Group in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Mizuho lifted their price objective on NorthWestern Energy Group from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Barclays lifted their price objective on NorthWestern Energy Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, StockNews.com cut NorthWestern Energy Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, NorthWestern Energy Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $55.29.

Insider Activity at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other NorthWestern Energy Group news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 688 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.92, for a total transaction of $35,720.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 10,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $559,593.76. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of NorthWestern Energy Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWE. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth about $28,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, CWM LLC grew its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 140.2% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 992 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the period. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

NorthWestern Energy Group Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $3.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $55.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $52.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.52.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $319.90 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $310.40 million. NorthWestern Energy Group had a return on equity of 7.65% and a net margin of 14.21%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.35 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 13th were given a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.60%. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.50%.

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.