XTX Topco Ltd Acquires Shares of 16,441 NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

Key Points

• XTX Topco Ltd acquired 16,441 shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, valued at approximately $951,000 in the first quarter.
• Several hedge funds have increased their holdings in NorthWestern Energy, with First Trust Advisors LP raising its stake by an impressive 391.6% during the fourth quarter.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, representing an annualized yield of 4.9% with a payout ratio of 71.93%.

XTX Topco Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 16,441 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $951,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of NWE. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 391.6% during the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 999,884 shares of the company's stock worth $53,454,000 after acquiring an additional 796,500 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth about $40,236,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth about $29,978,000. DRW Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group during the fourth quarter valued at $11,275,000. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 24.7% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 752,441 shares of the company's stock valued at $40,225,000 after purchasing an additional 148,870 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company's stock.

NorthWestern Energy Group Trading Up 0.6%

NorthWestern Energy Group stock traded up $0.31 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $55.37. 266,064 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 465,514. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.17, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.35. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $50.43 and a fifty-two week high of $59.89. 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 company's 50 day simple moving average is $52.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $54.59.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) last released 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 for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.53 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.8%. NorthWestern Energy Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on NorthWestern Energy Group in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $60.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective 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. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $56.00 price objective (down from $57.50) on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in a research report on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $60.00.

NorthWestern Energy Group 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.