NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. $NWE Shares Acquired by Ieq Capital LLC

Key Points

• Ieq Capital LLC significantly increased its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 298.7%, owning 15,542 shares worth $899,000 after purchasing an additional 11,644 shares in the first quarter.
• Analysts have generally rated the stock as a "Moderate Buy," with an average price target of $60.00, though LADENBURG THALM/SH SH recently lowered their target from $57.50 to $56.00.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.66 to be paid on September 30th, which represents an annualized yield of 4.6% with a payout ratio of 71.93%.

Ieq Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE - Free Report) by 298.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,542 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,644 shares during the quarter. Ieq Capital LLC's holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group were worth $899,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWE. Nuveen LLC acquired a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the first quarter worth $53,538,000. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 1,549.9% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 243,070 shares of the company's stock worth $14,066,000 after buying an additional 228,338 shares during the period. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group during the first quarter worth $9,899,000. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 24.7% during the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 752,441 shares of the company's stock worth $40,225,000 after buying an additional 148,870 shares during the period. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 7,288.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 132,927 shares of the company's stock worth $7,692,000 after buying an additional 131,128 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company's stock.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NWE traded up $0.24 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $57.95. 384,913 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 470,849. The business's 50-day moving average price is $54.53 and its 200 day moving average price is $55.08. 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 twelve month low of $50.43 and a twelve month high of $59.89. The company has a market capitalization of $3.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.88, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.40.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.38 by $0.02. NorthWestern Energy Group had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 14.81%.NorthWestern Energy Group's revenue was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.53 EPS. NorthWestern Energy Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.530-3.650 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. NorthWestern Energy Group's payout ratio is 71.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports 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 target price for the company. 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. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, NorthWestern Energy Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $60.00.

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.