Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. Buys 644 Shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. increased its position in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) by 10.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,716 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 644 shares during the period. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group were worth $342,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of 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 worth $39,113,000 after buying an additional 31,100 shares in the last quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System purchased a new stake in NorthWestern Energy Group during the 4th quarter valued at $875,000. Oliver Luxxe Assets LLC bought a new stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group in the 4th quarter worth $2,088,000. Federated Hermes Inc. raised its stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 451.5% in the fourth quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 46,371 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,360,000 after purchasing an additional 37,963 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board lifted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 76.4% during the fourth quarter. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board now owns 61,319 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,121,000 after purchasing an additional 26,555 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other NorthWestern Energy Group news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 687 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.30, for a total transaction of $35,243.10. Following the sale, the director now owns 10,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $545,832. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other NorthWestern Energy Group news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 687 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $51.30, for a total value of $35,243.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 10,640 shares in the company, valued at approximately $545,832. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP John D. Hines sold 1,565 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.15, for a total value of $80,049.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 32,794 shares in the company, valued at $1,677,413.10. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 3,602 shares of company stock worth $183,805. 0.57% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NWE opened at $49.05 on Thursday. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $45.97 and a 12-month high of $58.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.19 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.99. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $50.74 and a 200 day moving average of $49.78.

NorthWestern Energy Group (NYSE:NWE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The company reported $1.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by ($0.30). NorthWestern Energy Group had a net margin of 13.62% and a return on equity of 7.31%. The business had revenue of $475.30 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $471.60 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.05 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. will post 3.53 earnings per share for the current year.

NorthWestern Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $0.65 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.30%. NorthWestern Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 80.50%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NWE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded NorthWestern Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $51.00 to $52.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $53.00 to $54.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $51.86.

NorthWestern Energy Group 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.