NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) Now Covered by Bank of America

Research analysts at Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) in a research report issued on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America‘s target price indicates a potential upside of 16.20% from the stock’s previous close.

NWE has been the topic of several other research reports. StockNews.com lowered NorthWestern Energy Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on NorthWestern Energy Group from $54.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays increased their target price on NorthWestern Energy Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Mizuho increased their target price on NorthWestern Energy Group from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $54.88.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Up 0.9 %

NYSE:NWE opened at $55.94 on Thursday. NorthWestern Energy Group has a 52 week low of $45.97 and a 52 week high of $55.96. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $53.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $51.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.32 and a beta of 0.46.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.48 by $0.05. NorthWestern Energy Group had a return on equity of 7.65% and a net margin of 14.21%. The business had revenue of $319.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $310.40 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.35 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that NorthWestern Energy Group will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 688 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.92, for a total transaction of $35,720.96. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,778 shares in the company, valued at $559,593.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.94% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NorthWestern Energy Group

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in NWE. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 4,989.0% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 8,753 shares of the company’s stock worth $445,000 after buying an additional 8,581 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 768,577 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,113,000 after purchasing an additional 31,100 shares during the period. Principal Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $66,000. Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $209,000. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 956,127 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,658,000 after purchasing an additional 3,849 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

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.