NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from eight research firms, with an average twelve-month price target of $60.00.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share, with an annualized yield of 4.8%, which will be paid on September 30th.
• Shares of NorthWestern Energy opened at $55.06, showing a 12-month high of $59.89 and low of $50.43, with significant institutional ownership at 96.07%.

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" by the eight brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $60.00.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NWE. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. They set a "market perform" rating and a $60.00 target price on the stock. Barclays increased their target price on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $56.00 price target (down from $57.50) on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in a research note on Monday, June 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $62.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Performance

NWE traded down $0.04 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $55.33. 323,888 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 466,238. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $52.50 and its 200 day simple moving average is $54.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. NorthWestern Energy Group has a 1-year low of $50.43 and a 1-year high of $59.89.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 was up 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.53 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that NorthWestern Energy Group will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. 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 is presently 71.93%.

Institutional Trading of NorthWestern Energy Group

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 0.5% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,577,465 shares of the company's stock valued at $80,938,000 after acquiring an additional 7,684 shares during the last quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. raised its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 11.7% in the 2nd quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 1,118,650 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,387,000 after acquiring an additional 117,449 shares during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP raised its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,114,838 shares of the company's stock valued at $64,516,000 after acquiring an additional 4,264 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,033,437 shares of the company's stock valued at $55,248,000 after acquiring an additional 4,544 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 391.6% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 999,884 shares of the company's stock valued at $53,454,000 after acquiring an additional 796,500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company's stock.

NorthWestern Energy Group Company 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.