MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) Rating Lowered to Hold (C+) at Weiss Ratings

Key Points

• MGE Energy has been downgraded by Weiss Ratings from a "buy" to a "hold" rating, reflecting a shift in analyst sentiment.
• Analysts have varying views on the stock, with some reducing the price objective to $75.00 while others increased theirs to $83.00, indicating mixed expectations for the company.
• In its latest earnings report, MGE Energy missed earnings expectations by reporting $0.72 EPS against the consensus estimate of $0.73.

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE - Get Free Report) was downgraded by research analysts at Weiss Ratings from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report issued on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of MGE Energy from $76.00 to $75.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 25th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised MGE Energy from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $69.00 to $83.00 in a research report on Thursday, September 11th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of MGE Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MGE Energy has an average rating of "Reduce" and an average target price of $79.00.

MGE Energy Price Performance

MGEE opened at $84.11 on Wednesday. MGE Energy has a 12-month low of $81.14 and a 12-month high of $109.22. The company has a market cap of $3.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.36 and a beta of 0.79. The company has a current ratio of 1.80, a quick ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $84.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $87.68.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James G. Berbee acquired 507 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $83.83 per share, with a total value of $42,501.81. Following the purchase, 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.19% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of MGE Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in MGEE. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of MGE Energy by 5.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 4,908 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $456,000 after buying an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MGE Energy during the first quarter valued at $332,000. MBE Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of MGE Energy by 3.5% in the first quarter. MBE Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,580 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $798,000 after purchasing an additional 290 shares during the last quarter. FORM Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in MGE Energy in the 1st quarter worth about $807,000. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its stake in MGE Energy by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 7,215 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $671,000 after buying an additional 126 shares during the period. 52.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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