Picton Mahoney Asset Management Takes $1.17 Million Position in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

Key Points

• Picton Mahoney Asset Management acquired 20,206 shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc., valued at approximately $1,170,000, highlighting renewed interest from institutional investors in the company's stock.
• The company reported an EPS of $1.22 for the last quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate by $0.04, despite a revenue decline of 1.8% year-over-year.
• Research analysts have set a consensus target price of $60.00 for NorthWestern Energy Group, with varying ratings from multiple firms indicating cautious optimism for the stock's performance.

Picton Mahoney Asset Management bought a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 20,206 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,170,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NWE. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 2.6% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 7,179 shares of the company's stock worth $415,000 after purchasing an additional 185 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 14,728 shares of the company's stock valued at $852,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.2% during the first quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 17,200 shares of the company's stock worth $995,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming grew its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 6.1% in the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 4,138 shares of the company's stock worth $221,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. Finally, New York State Teachers Retirement System increased its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 0.4% in the first quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System now owns 75,478 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,368,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on NWE shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $56.00 price objective (down previously from $57.50) on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Barclays upped their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on NorthWestern Energy Group in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $60.00 price target on the stock. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $60.00.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock traded down $0.17 on Friday, hitting $53.53. The company had a trading volume of 459,008 shares, compared to its average volume of 467,029. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.35. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $50.43 and a 1 year high of $59.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $52.51 and a 200-day moving average of $54.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.52.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, topping 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%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.53 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast 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 will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.9%. NorthWestern Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 71.93%.

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.