American Century Companies Inc. Has $175.79 Million Stock Position in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

American Century Companies Inc. reduced its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) by 15.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,288,228 shares of the company’s stock after selling 578,634 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 5.36% of NorthWestern Energy Group worth $175,789,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in NWE. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in NorthWestern Energy Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,978,000. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 2,371,931 shares of the company’s stock worth $126,803,000 after buying an additional 136,922 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 886,066 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,369,000 after purchasing an additional 135,611 shares during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP raised its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 11.8% in the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,070,434 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,250,000 after purchasing an additional 113,265 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC raised its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 17.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 759,804 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,476,000 after purchasing an additional 110,461 shares during the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other NorthWestern Energy Group news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 702 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.32, for a total transaction of $38,132.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $598,660.72. This represents a 5.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.57% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently commented on NWE. Guggenheim raised NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $57.50 price objective for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on NorthWestern Energy Group from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.25.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NWE opened at $55.32 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The company has a market capitalization of $3.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.16, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $54.39 and a 200 day moving average of $54.47. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $47.48 and a 12 month high of $57.49.

NorthWestern Energy Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.77%. This is an increase from NorthWestern Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.33%.

NorthWestern Energy Group Profile

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.