NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) Receives $59.20 Average Price Target from Analysts

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) has been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the six ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $59.20.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on NWE. Barclays upped their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on NorthWestern Energy Group in a research report on Monday, October 27th. They set an “equal weight” rating and a $58.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $60.00 to $61.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NorthWestern Energy Group

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NWE. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 249.2% during the 1st quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 41,201 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,384,000 after purchasing an additional 29,404 shares during the period. Entropy Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group during the first quarter worth approximately $278,000. Aigen Investment Management LP acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group during the first quarter worth approximately $283,000. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $53,538,000. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 52.9% in the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 196,144 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,351,000 after acquiring an additional 67,823 shares during the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NWE opened at $67.84 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $4.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s fifty day moving average is $63.44 and its 200-day moving average is $57.66. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. NorthWestern Energy Group has a 12 month low of $50.43 and a 12 month high of $69.23.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The company reported $0.79 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.04. NorthWestern Energy Group had a net margin of 14.81% and a return on equity of 7.40%. NorthWestern Energy Group’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.65 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that NorthWestern Energy Group will post 3.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 15th. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. NorthWestern Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 74.79%.

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.