NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the eight research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, five have issued a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $54.88.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on NWE shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Bank of America assumed coverage on NorthWestern Energy Group in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 target price on the stock. Barclays lifted their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $54.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st.

Insider Transactions at NorthWestern Energy Group

In related news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 688 shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.92, for a total value of $35,720.96. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $559,593.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NorthWestern Energy Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp bought a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in the first quarter worth $28,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC bought a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the 1st quarter valued at $33,000. CWM LLC boosted its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 140.2% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 992 shares of the company’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 579 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 142.9% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,139 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 670 shares during the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NWE opened at $56.47 on Monday. NorthWestern Energy Group has a 52-week low of $45.97 and a 52-week high of $57.23. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $53.69 and its 200 day simple moving average is $51.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.48 and a beta of 0.46.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $319.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $310.40 million. NorthWestern Energy Group had a net margin of 14.21% and a return on equity of 7.65%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.35 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that NorthWestern Energy Group will post 3.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.60%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 13th. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.50%.

NorthWestern Energy Group Company 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.