MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) Stock Rating Upgraded by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE - Free Report) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a report released on Friday morning.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on MGEE. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of MGE Energy to a "strong sell" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on MGE Energy from $75.00 to $74.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd.

MGE Energy Price Performance

MGEE traded up $0.36 on Friday, reaching $85.89. The company had a trading volume of 136,306 shares, compared to its average volume of 137,530. The company has a market capitalization of $3.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.26 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 2.07, a quick ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61. The company has a fifty day moving average of $89.11 and a 200-day moving average of $90.22. MGE Energy has a one year low of $82.76 and a one year high of $109.22.

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. MGE Energy had a return on equity of 10.58% and a net margin of 18.22%. The business had revenue of $218.97 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $202.42 million. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that MGE Energy will post 3.43 earnings per share for the current year.

MGE Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 15th. Shareholders of record on Sunday, June 1st were issued a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.10%. MGE Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.85%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in MGE Energy by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 769,612 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $72,314,000 after buying an additional 2,225 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its position in shares of MGE Energy by 9,697.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 456,248 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,413,000 after acquiring an additional 451,591 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in shares of MGE Energy by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 394,414 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $36,665,000 after purchasing an additional 1,287 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of MGE Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $20,910,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of MGE Energy by 49.4% in the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 208,936 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $19,423,000 after purchasing an additional 69,084 shares in the last quarter. 52.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About MGE Energy

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.