Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Lowers Stock Position in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA cut its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) by 2.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,094,714 shares of the company’s stock after selling 30,832 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 1.79% of NorthWestern Energy Group worth $62,640,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NWE. Arizona State Retirement System increased its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.9% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 17,154 shares of the company’s stock valued at $859,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,903 shares of the company’s stock valued at $452,000 after buying an additional 359 shares in the last quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 0.6% during the third quarter. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 62,205 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,559,000 after buying an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new position in NorthWestern Energy Group during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 38.4% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,676 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NorthWestern Energy Group Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:NWE opened at $56.75 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $3.48 billion, a PE ratio of 15.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $55.47 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.17. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $46.15 and a 12 month high of $57.48.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.05). NorthWestern Energy Group had a return on equity of 7.95% and a net margin of 15.15%. The firm had revenue of $345.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $344.06 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.49 EPS. Research analysts forecast that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.38 earnings per share for the current year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Investors of record on Friday, December 13th will be given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, December 13th. This represents a $2.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.58%. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 70.08%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on NWE shares. Barclays lifted their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut NorthWestern Energy Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their target price on NorthWestern Energy Group from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $57.00.

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.