NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) Hits New 1-Year High – Here’s What Happened

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as $57.94 and last traded at $57.86, with a volume of 66806 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $56.80.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on NWE. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $57.50 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Guggenheim upgraded shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.25.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Up 1.7 %

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $54.64 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $54.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The company has a market cap of $3.54 billion, a PE ratio of 15.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.45.

NorthWestern Energy Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.66 per share. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.57%. This is an increase from NorthWestern Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.33%.

Insider Transactions at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other NorthWestern Energy Group news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 702 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.32, for a total value of $38,132.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 11,021 shares in the company, valued at $598,660.72. This represents a 5.99 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position 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 buying an additional 796,500 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,236,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth about $29,978,000. DRW Securities LLC acquired a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $11,275,000. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 752,441 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,225,000 after buying an additional 148,870 shares during the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.