William Blair Investment Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) by 2.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 552,052 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,352 shares during the quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC owned 0.90% of NorthWestern Energy Group worth $29,513,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. State Street Corp increased its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.7% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,504,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,302,000 after acquiring an additional 42,104 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 6.1% during the fourth quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 2,371,931 shares of the company’s stock valued at $126,803,000 after acquiring an additional 136,922 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 2.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,536,518 shares of the company’s stock valued at $87,935,000 after acquiring an additional 35,279 shares during the last quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP increased its position in shares of 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 valued at $61,250,000 after acquiring an additional 113,265 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its position in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group by 18.1% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 886,066 shares of the company’s stock valued at $47,369,000 after acquiring an additional 135,611 shares during the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NorthWestern Energy Group Price Performance

NorthWestern Energy Group stock opened at $55.93 on Wednesday. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a one year low of $47.48 and a one year high of $57.49. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $54.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $54.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.32, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.45.

NorthWestern Energy Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.66 dividend. This is a positive change from NorthWestern Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 72.33%.

Insider Transactions at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 702 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $54.32, for a total value of $38,132.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,021 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $598,660.72. This trade represents a 5.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays reduced their price objective on NorthWestern Energy Group from $57.00 to $56.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Guggenheim raised NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $57.50 price objective for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $59.25.

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.