LADENBURG THALM/SH SH Upgrades NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) to “Buy”

LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) from a neutral rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Wednesday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has $57.50 target price on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the stock. Barclays raised shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $53.00 to $56.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com downgraded NorthWestern Energy Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, NorthWestern Energy Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $57.50.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NWE stock opened at $54.40 on Wednesday. NorthWestern Energy Group has a 12 month low of $46.15 and a 12 month high of $57.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market cap of $3.34 billion, a PE ratio of 14.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.48. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $53.56 and a 200-day moving average of $53.77.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last issued its earnings results on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by ($0.05). NorthWestern Energy Group had a net margin of 15.15% and a return on equity of 7.95%. The firm had revenue of $345.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $344.06 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.49 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that NorthWestern Energy Group will post 3.39 EPS for the current year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.78%. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is 70.08%.

Insider Buying and Selling at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other NorthWestern Energy Group news, Director Anthony Thomas Clark sold 7,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.95, for a total value of $384,430.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,816 shares in the company, valued at $873,591.20. This represents a 30.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Britt E. Ide sold 700 shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.57, for a total value of $37,499.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 10,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $583,270.16. This represents a 6.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NorthWestern Energy Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in the third quarter worth $35,000. Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. AdvisorNet Financial Inc lifted its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 29.3% during the fourth quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 883 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC lifted its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 150.0% during the 3rd quarter. nVerses Capital LLC now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 600 shares during the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.