NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) Shares Purchased by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) by 8.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 19,006 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,466 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group were worth $1,016,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of NWE. Systematic Financial Management LP raised its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 11.8% during the third quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,070,434 shares of the company’s stock worth $61,250,000 after purchasing an additional 113,265 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in 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 buying an additional 110,461 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC increased its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 204.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 110,571 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,327,000 after buying an additional 74,278 shares in the last quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management increased its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 1,218.2% during the third quarter. Meritage Portfolio Management now owns 60,954 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,488,000 after buying an additional 56,330 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp increased its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,504,400 shares of the company’s stock worth $143,302,000 after buying an additional 42,104 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on NWE shares. Guggenheim raised NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays dropped their price target on NorthWestern Energy Group from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $57.50 price target for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NorthWestern Energy Group currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.25.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Up 0.7 %

NWE opened at $53.92 on Friday. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $47.22 and a 12 month high of $57.49. The stock has a market cap of $3.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.48. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $53.11 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.37.

NorthWestern Energy Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be given a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. This is a boost from NorthWestern Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.90%. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.23%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Anthony Thomas Clark sold 7,400 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 sale, the director now directly owns 16,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $873,591.20. This trade represents a 30.56 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Britt E. Ide sold 700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 9th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $583,270.16. This represents a 6.04 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.94% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.