Everence Capital Management Inc. Invests $498,000 in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

Everence Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 9,320 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $498,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NWE. Arizona State Retirement System boosted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 17,154 shares of the company’s stock worth $859,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in NorthWestern Energy Group by 4.8% during the third quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 7,903 shares of the company’s stock worth $452,000 after buying an additional 359 shares during the period. Deroy & Devereaux Private Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position 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 acquiring an additional 375 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 38.4% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,676 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on NWE. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Barclays raised NorthWestern Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $53.00 to $56.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 19th. StockNews.com downgraded NorthWestern Energy Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Bank of America began coverage on NorthWestern Energy Group in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $65.00 target price for the company. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $57.50.

Insider Activity at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.57, for a total value of $37,499.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 10,888 shares in the company, valued at approximately $583,270.16. This trade represents a 6.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Anthony Thomas Clark sold 7,400 shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.95, for a total transaction of $384,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $873,591.20. The trade was a 30.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

NorthWestern Energy Group Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE NWE opened at $53.14 on Monday. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $46.15 and a twelve month high of $57.49. The firm has a market cap of $3.26 billion, a PE ratio of 14.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.48. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $53.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $53.59. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.70 by ($0.05). NorthWestern Energy Group had a net margin of 15.15% and a return on equity of 7.95%. The firm had revenue of $345.20 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $344.06 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.49 earnings per share. Analysts expect that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 13th were paid a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 13th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.89%. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 70.08%.

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.