NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) Shares Acquired by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lifted its position in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) by 3.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 51,506 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,685 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group were worth $2,621,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWE. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 138.1% during the fourth quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 319 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 499.5% in the 4th quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after purchasing an additional 939 shares during the last quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 32.7% during the third quarter. Tucker Asset Management LLC now owns 1,875 shares of the company’s stock worth $90,000 after purchasing an additional 462 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 1,233.1% during the third quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 2,373 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,000 after purchasing an additional 2,195 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

NorthWestern Energy Group Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:NWE traded down $0.08 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $51.18. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 8,006 shares, compared to its average volume of 383,811. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.66. The stock has a market cap of $3.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.87 and a beta of 0.43. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $49.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $49.63. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $45.97 and a twelve month high of $60.29.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.39 by ($0.30). NorthWestern Energy Group had a return on equity of 7.31% and a net margin of 13.62%. The company had revenue of $475.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $471.60 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.05 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th will be given a $0.65 dividend. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 14th. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NWE has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Barclays lifted their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $48.00 to $49.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Guggenheim upgraded shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $47.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $51.71.

Insider Activity at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other news, VP Bobbi L. Schroeppel sold 1,350 shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.75, for a total value of $68,512.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 31,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,614,560.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, VP Bobbi L. Schroeppel sold 1,350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.75, for a total value of $68,512.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 31,814 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,614,560.50. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Britt E. Ide sold 687 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.30, for a total value of $35,243.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,640 shares in the company, valued at $545,832. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.57% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.