Bank of Montreal Can Raises Position in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

Bank of Montreal Can boosted its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) by 9.9% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 52,569 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 4,738 shares during the quarter. Bank of Montreal Can’s holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group were worth $2,636,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 76,905 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,917,000 after buying an additional 202 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 2.0% in the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 15,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $765,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System raised its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 17,154 shares of the company’s stock valued at $859,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp acquired a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Fidelis Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $28,000. 96.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE NWE opened at $55.95 on Friday. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $46.15 and a 1 year high of $57.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.36. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $54.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.87. The company has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.46.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.48 by $0.05. NorthWestern Energy Group had a net margin of 14.21% and a return on equity of 7.65%. The firm had revenue of $319.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $310.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.35 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.1% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.56 earnings per share for the current year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 13th were given a $0.65 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 13th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.65%. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 80.50%.

Insider Buying and Selling at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other NorthWestern Energy Group news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 688 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.92, for a total value of $35,720.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $559,593.76. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

NWE has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $54.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, NorthWestern Energy Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $54.88.

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.