Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 75,299 Shares of MGE Energy Inc. $MGEE

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. sold 75,299 shares of MGE Energy Inc., reducing its stake in the company by 1.6% during the first quarter.
• MGE Energy recently reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the analysts' expectations by $0.01.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.45, representing an annualized rate of $1.80 and a yield of 2.1%.

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its holdings in shares of MGE Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:MGEE - Free Report) by 1.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,565,233 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 75,299 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 12.50% of MGE Energy worth $424,384,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its stake in shares of MGE Energy by 26.8% in the 4th quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 28,661 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,693,000 after acquiring an additional 6,053 shares during the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in MGE Energy by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 15,542 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,460,000 after purchasing an additional 1,397 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in MGE Energy by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 13,071 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,228,000 after purchasing an additional 509 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in MGE Energy by 30.3% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 139,852 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $13,140,000 after purchasing an additional 32,555 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in MGE Energy during the 4th quarter worth $781,000. 52.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at MGE Energy

In other news, Director James G. Berbee purchased 507 shares of MGE Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $83.83 per share, for a total transaction of $42,501.81. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 6,329 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $530,560.07. This trade represents a 8.71% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on MGEE shares. Wall Street Zen lowered MGE Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised MGE Energy to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on MGE Energy from $75.00 to $74.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Sell" and an average price target of $74.00.

MGE Energy Stock Up 1.6%

Shares of MGEE traded up $1.3350 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $84.7350. The stock had a trading volume of 33,424 shares, compared to its average volume of 147,702. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.80 and a quick ratio of 1.20. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $86.89 and a 200-day simple moving average of $89.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.54 and a beta of 0.76. MGE Energy Inc. has a 1-year low of $82.21 and a 1-year high of $109.22.

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.72 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.73 by ($0.01). MGE Energy had a net margin of 18.24% and a return on equity of 10.58%. The business had revenue of $159.45 million during the quarter. Sell-side analysts predict that MGE Energy Inc. will post 3.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MGE Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Monday, September 1st will be paid a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. This is a positive change from MGE Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. MGE Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.00%.

MGE Energy 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.