JPMorgan Chase & Co. Cuts NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) Price Target to $73.00

NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) had its price objective reduced by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $76.00 to $73.00 in a report issued on Wednesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

A number of other analysts also recently issued reports on NWE. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of NorthWestern from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Weiss Ratings cut NorthWestern from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Thursday, July 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NorthWestern currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.70.

NorthWestern Trading Down 1.1%

Shares of NWE opened at $69.24 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19. NorthWestern has a 12-month low of $55.50 and a 12-month high of $75.18. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $70.95 and a 200 day moving average price of $70.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.00, a P/E/G ratio of 3.70 and a beta of 0.34.

NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $392.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $386.22 million. NorthWestern had a net margin of 10.13% and a return on equity of 8.03%. NorthWestern’s quarterly revenue was up 14.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.40 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that NorthWestern will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

NorthWestern Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 17th were paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 17th. NorthWestern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 96.75%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NorthWestern

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Millennium Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of NorthWestern during the 1st quarter worth approximately $5,708,000. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in NorthWestern in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $220,000. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in NorthWestern by 13.5% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 154,776 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,957,000 after purchasing an additional 18,454 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in NorthWestern in the second quarter valued at approximately $230,000. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. lifted its stake in NorthWestern by 19.5% during the second quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 23,123 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,186,000 after purchasing an additional 3,775 shares in the last quarter. 96.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About NorthWestern

NorthWestern Corporation, doing business as NorthWestern Energy, is a regulated electric and natural gas utility serving customers in Montana, South Dakota and Nebraska. The company provides essential energy services to residential, commercial, industrial and governmental customers across its service territories.

NorthWestern Energy’s operations include electricity generation, transmission and distribution, as well as natural gas transmission, storage and distribution. Its generation portfolio includes a mix of owned facilities and purchased power, with resources that include hydroelectric, coal, natural gas and renewable energy.

The company traces its roots to 1923 and is headquartered in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.