Principal Financial Group Inc. Raises Position in MGE Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:MGEE)

Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of MGE Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:MGEE - Free Report) by 2.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 196,183 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,736 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.54% of MGE Energy worth $18,237,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of MGE Energy by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 432,877 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $40,673,000 after buying an additional 7,416 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of MGE Energy in the 4th quarter worth $781,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in shares of MGE Energy by 14.0% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 8,556 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $804,000 after purchasing an additional 1,048 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its holdings in MGE Energy by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,266 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $683,000 after buying an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of MGE Energy by 7,321.7% in the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,707 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $160,000 after purchasing an additional 1,684 shares in the last quarter. 52.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of MGE Energy to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on MGE Energy from $75.00 to $74.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd.

MGE Energy Trading Down 2.1%

MGEE stock traded down $1.81 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $86.25. 173,885 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 203,584. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.88 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a 50 day moving average of $89.73 and a 200-day moving average of $90.59. MGE Energy Inc. has a 52-week low of $78.67 and a 52-week high of $109.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a current ratio of 2.07.

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $218.97 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $202.42 million. MGE Energy had a net margin of 18.22% and a return on equity of 10.58%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that MGE Energy Inc. will post 3.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGE Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, June 1st were given a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.09%. MGE Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.85%.

MGE Energy Company Profile

MGE Energy, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a public utility holding company primarily in the United States. It operates through Regulated Electric Utility Operations; Regulated Gas Utility Operations; Nonregulated Energy Operations; Transmission Investments; and All Other segments. The company generates, purchases, and distributes electricity and natural gas in Wisconsin and Iowa; owns and leases electric generating capacity; and plans, constructs, operates, maintains, and expands transmission facilities to provide transmission power services.