NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from 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 earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eight research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $60.00.

Several research firms have recently commented on NWE. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $59.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price 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. 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 target for the company. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $56.00 price objective (down previously from $57.50) on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in a research report on Monday, June 2nd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NorthWestern Energy Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 18.9% in the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 27,670 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,479,000 after buying an additional 4,389 shares during the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 18.8% during the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 7,869 shares of the company's stock valued at $421,000 after acquiring an additional 1,245 shares during the period. Wells Fargo & Company MN grew its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 24.9% in the fourth quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 86,827 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,642,000 after purchasing an additional 17,336 shares during the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in the fourth quarter worth about $361,000. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 133,108 shares of the company's stock worth $7,116,000 after purchasing an additional 5,650 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 96.07% of the company's stock.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock opened at $55.06 on Thursday. NorthWestern Energy Group has a 12 month low of $50.43 and a 12 month 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 stock has a market cap of $3.38 billion, a PE ratio of 15.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.35. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $52.50 and a 200-day simple moving average of $54.59.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The company reported $0.40 earnings per share 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%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.53 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that NorthWestern Energy Group will post 3.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

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

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.

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