MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) Rating Lowered to "Sell" at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded MGE Energy from “Hold” to “Sell.” Despite the downgrade, analyst opinions remain mixed, with a consensus “Hold” rating and an average price target of $76.
• MGE Energy shares opened at $74.08, down 1.2%, and remain near the lower end of their 12-month range of $72.16 to $87.94. The company has a $2.80 billion market capitalization and a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.20.
• The utility beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting adjusted earnings of $0.89 per share versus the $0.77 consensus estimate, although revenue of $161.19 million fell short of estimates.

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE - Get Free Report) was downgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report released on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on MGEE. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of MGE Energy in a research report on Wednesday, August 5th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on MGE Energy from $74.00 to $71.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded MGE Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $81.00 price target for the company in a research note on Monday, June 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, MGE Energy has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $76.00.

MGE Energy Trading Down 1.2%

NASDAQ:MGEE opened at $74.08 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.14, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. MGE Energy has a 12 month low of $72.16 and a 12 month high of $87.94. The company has a market cap of $2.80 billion, a PE ratio of 18.20 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $79.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.30.

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $161.19 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $166.37 million. MGE Energy had a net margin of 19.45% and a return on equity of 11.10%. Research analysts forecast that MGE Energy will post 3.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of MGE Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $323,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in MGE Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $191,000. IFP Advisors Inc raised its stake in MGE Energy by 41.3% during the 2nd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,308 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $107,000 after acquiring an additional 382 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP raised its stake in MGE Energy by 114.6% during the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,972 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $161,000 after acquiring an additional 1,053 shares during the period. Finally, Waverly Advisors LLC purchased a new position in MGE Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $260,000. 52.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MGE Energy Company Profile

MGE Energy, Inc is a public utility holding company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin. Its principal subsidiary, Madison Gas and Electric Company (MG&E), provides electric and natural gas service to residential, commercial and industrial customers in south-central Wisconsin.

The company's operations include generating, purchasing, transmitting and distributing electricity, as well as distributing natural gas. MGE Energy's generation portfolio includes renewable resources such as wind and solar, along with other generation and purchased-power arrangements.

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