DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main Decreases Holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lowered its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE - Free Report) by 16.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 25,825 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,024 shares during the quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main's holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group were worth $1,381,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Barclays PLC grew its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 204.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 110,571 shares of the company's stock worth $6,327,000 after buying an additional 74,278 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the third quarter worth about $35,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc grew its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 883 shares of the company's stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Accurate Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth about $205,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth about $401,000. Institutional investors own 96.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on NWE. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in a research note on Tuesday. They set a "market perform" rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays increased their price target on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Guggenheim raised shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, NorthWestern Energy Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $60.21.

Insider Activity

In other NorthWestern Energy Group news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 702 shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.32, for a total transaction of $38,132.64. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,021 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $598,660.72. This trade represents a 5.99% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.94% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Up 1.2%

Shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock traded up $0.65 during trading on Friday, reaching $56.09. 420,086 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 393,499. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.37. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $48.52 and a 1-year high of $59.89. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $56.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $54.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.44 billion, a PE ratio of 15.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.40.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.18 by $0.04. NorthWestern Energy Group had a net margin of 14.81% and a return on equity of 7.40%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.09 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts expect that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 13th will be given a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.71%. NorthWestern Energy Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 68.75%.

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.