Legato Capital Management LLC Makes New Investment in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

Key Points

• Legato Capital Management LLC has made a new investment of $300,000 in NorthWestern Energy Group, acquiring 5,179 shares of the company during the first quarter.
• NorthWestern Energy reported $1.22 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates and showing a year-over-year increase from $1.09 EPS, despite a 1.8% decline in revenue.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend of $2.64 and a yield of 5.02%.

Legato Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 5,179 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $300,000.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 7,179 shares of the company's stock worth $415,000 after acquiring an additional 185 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 14,728 shares of the company's stock valued at $852,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 17,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $995,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. State of Wyoming lifted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 4,138 shares of the company's stock valued at $221,000 after buying an additional 238 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 75,478 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,368,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. 96.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of NWE traded down $0.49 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $52.14. The stock had a trading volume of 148,819 shares, compared to its average volume of 461,402. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $52.78 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $54.57. 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 $50.43 and a 1-year high of $59.89. The company has a market cap of $3.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.29, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.35.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 period last year, the business posted $1.09 EPS. The company's revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 13th were given a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.06%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 13th. NorthWestern Energy Group's payout ratio is currently 68.75%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on NWE shares. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on NorthWestern Energy Group in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $60.00 price target for the company. Barclays upped their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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 report on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $56.00 target price (down from $57.50) on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $60.00.

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.