NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) Raised to “Buy” at LADENBURG THALM/SH SH

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) was upgraded by LADENBURG THALM/SH SH from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $57.50 price target on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH’s target price points to a potential upside of 9.98% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on NWE. StockNews.com lowered shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Barclays raised shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $53.00 to $56.00 in a report on Thursday, December 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted 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. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $52.00 to $56.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $57.50.

NorthWestern Energy Group Trading Up 1.5 %

NWE stock opened at $52.28 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.09, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.48. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $53.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $53.74. 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 has a 52-week low of $46.15 and a 52-week high of $57.49.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, October 28th. The company reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) 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 company had revenue of $345.20 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $344.06 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.49 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that NorthWestern Energy Group will post 3.39 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at NorthWestern Energy Group

In related news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $53.57, for a total transaction of $37,499.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 10,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $583,270.16. The trade was a 6.04 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Anthony Thomas Clark sold 7,400 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.95, for a total value of $384,430.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 16,816 shares in the company, valued at approximately $873,591.20. This trade represents 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 company insiders.

Institutional Trading of NorthWestern Energy Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Systematic Financial Management LP boosted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 11.8% in the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,070,434 shares of the company’s stock valued at $61,250,000 after buying an additional 113,265 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 17.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 759,804 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,476,000 after acquiring an additional 110,461 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 36.4% during the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 396,409 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,840,000 after buying an additional 105,845 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC raised its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 204.7% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 110,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,327,000 after acquiring an additional 74,278 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 6.3% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,027,698 shares of the company’s stock valued at $51,467,000 after purchasing an additional 61,216 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.