Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership Boosts Stake in MGE Energy Inc. $MGEE

Key Points

• Arrowstreet Capital increased its MGE Energy stake by 12.5% in the first quarter, acquiring 13,610 shares to own 122,768 shares valued at approximately $9.5 million. Institutional investors collectively hold 52.58% of the company.
• MGE Energy exceeded first-quarter expectations, reporting $1.32 in EPS versus the $1.13 consensus and revenue of $242.7 million versus $227.1 million expected.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.475, equal to $1.90 annually and a 2.4% yield. Analysts maintain a consensus “Hold” rating with a $78.50 target price, compared with the stock’s reported $79.53 price.

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its position in MGE Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:MGEE - Free Report) by 12.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 122,768 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 13,610 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership owned 0.33% of MGE Energy worth $9,489,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL grew its holdings in MGE Energy by 20.8% in the third quarter. Tudor Investment Corp ET AL now owns 97,520 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $8,209,000 after purchasing an additional 16,786 shares during the period. Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MGE Energy by 44.3% during the fourth quarter. Speece Thorson Capital Group Inc. now owns 195,596 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $15,339,000 after purchasing an additional 60,037 shares during the last quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its position in shares of MGE Energy by 369.1% in the 4th quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 40,409 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,169,000 after purchasing an additional 31,795 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its position in shares of MGE Energy by 259.3% in the 4th quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 23,780 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,865,000 after purchasing an additional 17,161 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Bancorp grew its stake in shares of MGE Energy by 27,266.2% in the 1st quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 20,251 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,565,000 after buying an additional 20,177 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.58% of the company's stock.

MGE Energy Stock Performance

MGEE stock opened at $79.53 on Friday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $78.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $78.69. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.65. MGE Energy Inc. has a 12-month low of $72.16 and a 12-month high of $88.01. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.92 billion, a PE ratio of 20.39 and a beta of 0.71.

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.32 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.13 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $242.70 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $227.06 million. MGE Energy had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 18.61%. As a group, research analysts forecast that MGE Energy Inc. will post 3.99 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGE Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. MGE Energy's payout ratio is currently 48.72%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MGEE. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of MGE Energy in a research report on Friday, May 8th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised MGE Energy from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $81.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, June 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "underweight" rating and issued a $76.00 target price on shares of MGE Energy in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MGE Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $78.50.

MGE Energy Profile

MGE Energy, Inc is a public utility holding company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin. Through its principal subsidiary, Madison Gas and Electric Company (MGE), the company provides regulated electric and natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial and industrial customers in south-central Wisconsin. MGE Energy's operations encompass the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity as well as the purchase and distribution of natural gas, with an emphasis on reliable service and system resilience.

Since reorganizing as a holding company in 2001, MGE Energy has expanded its portfolio to include nonregulated subsidiaries involved in renewable energy development, energy services and infrastructure support.

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