NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) Receives $60.00 Average Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the eight brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and four have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $60.00.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 2.6% during the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 7,179 shares of the company's stock valued at $415,000 after buying an additional 185 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System grew its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 14,728 shares of the company's stock valued at $852,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System increased its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 17,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $995,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. State of Wyoming increased its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 4,138 shares of the company's stock valued at $221,000 after purchasing an additional 238 shares during the period. Finally, PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 26,322 shares of the company's stock worth $1,523,000 after buying an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company's stock.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Up 0.3%

NorthWestern Energy Group stock traded up $0.14 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $51.72. 373,144 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 422,322. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $3.17 billion, a PE ratio of 14.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.35. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $53.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $54.57. NorthWestern Energy Group has a 12 month low of $50.43 and a 12 month high of $59.89.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The company reported $1.22 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.18 by $0.04. NorthWestern Energy Group had a return on equity of 7.40% and a net margin of 14.81%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.09 EPS. NorthWestern Energy Group's revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that NorthWestern Energy Group will post 3.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 13th were issued a $0.66 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 13th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.10%. NorthWestern Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 68.75%.

About NorthWestern Energy Group

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.