Lesa Sroufe & Co Purchases Shares of 37,393 NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

Lesa Sroufe & Co purchased a new stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm purchased 37,393 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,164,000. NorthWestern Energy Group makes up approximately 2.2% of Lesa Sroufe & Co's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Lesa Sroufe & Co owned about 0.06% of NorthWestern Energy Group as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 8.4% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 19,006 shares of the company's stock worth $1,016,000 after purchasing an additional 1,466 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in NorthWestern Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth $73,000. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 214,973 shares of the company's stock worth $11,492,000 after purchasing an additional 957 shares during the last quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D lifted its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 37,714 shares of the company's stock worth $2,016,000 after buying an additional 1,063 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 174,015 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,303,000 after purchasing an additional 2,653 shares during the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on NWE shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of 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. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH restated a "neutral" rating and set a $56.00 price objective (down previously from $57.50) on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in a report on Monday, June 2nd. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $60.00.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Performance

NWE traded down $0.23 during trading on Friday, reaching $50.85. 761,878 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 410,474. The company has a market capitalization of $3.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.93, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $55.60 and a 200 day moving average price of $54.66. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $48.52 and a fifty-two week high of $59.89.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.22 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 last year, the company posted $1.09 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th will be paid a $0.66 dividend. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 13th. NorthWestern Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is 68.75%.

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.