Vestcor Inc Buys Shares of 4,596 NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE)

Vestcor Inc acquired a new stake in shares of NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 4,596 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $246,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp raised its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 1.7% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,504,400 shares of the company’s stock valued at $143,302,000 after purchasing an additional 42,104 shares during the last quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 6.1% in the 4th quarter. River Road Asset Management LLC now owns 2,371,931 shares of the company’s stock valued at $126,803,000 after buying an additional 136,922 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in NorthWestern Energy Group by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,536,518 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,935,000 after buying an additional 35,279 shares during the period. Systematic Financial Management LP grew its holdings in NorthWestern Energy Group by 11.8% during the 3rd quarter. Systematic Financial Management LP now owns 1,070,434 shares of the company’s stock worth $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 NorthWestern Energy Group by 18.1% in the 4th 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 period. Institutional investors own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NorthWestern Energy Group news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 702 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.32, for a total value of $38,132.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $598,660.72. This trade represents a 5.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.94% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock opened at $56.29 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $3.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.42, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.94. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $54.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $54.42. NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $47.48 and a 1-year high of $57.49.

NorthWestern Energy Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.66 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.69%. This is a boost from NorthWestern Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. NorthWestern Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 72.33%.

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.