NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) Hits New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

NorthWestern Corporation (NASDAQ:NWE) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $76.68 and last traded at $75.1710, with a volume of 32,362 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $74.49.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have weighed in on NWE shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of NorthWestern from $62.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 31st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of NorthWestern from $76.00 to $73.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of NorthWestern in a report on Thursday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $85.00 price target for the company. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of NorthWestern from $73.00 to $70.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of NorthWestern from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $73.92.

NorthWestern Trading Down 0.5%

The firm has a market cap of $4.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.77, a P/E/G ratio of 3.89 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.19, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.83. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $70.46 and a 200-day moving average of $70.66.

NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.42 by $0.08. The business had revenue of $392.60 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $386.22 million. NorthWestern had a return on equity of 8.03% and a net margin of 10.13%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.40 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that NorthWestern Corporation will post 3.71 earnings per share 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 $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 17th. NorthWestern’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 96.75%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NorthWestern

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of NorthWestern by 4.8% during the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,981 shares of the company’s stock worth $285,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its position in NorthWestern by 8.2% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 2,635 shares of the company’s stock valued at $180,000 after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund boosted its stake in NorthWestern by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 12,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $832,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. State of Michigan Retirement System boosted its stake in NorthWestern by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 14,828 shares of the company’s stock valued at $978,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its position in NorthWestern by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 121,483 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,011,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 96.07% of the company’s stock.

About NorthWestern

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc, doing business as NorthWestern Energy, is an energy utility that provides electricity and natural gas services to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. The company’s operations include the generation, purchase, transmission, and distribution of electricity, as well as the distribution and supply of natural gas.

NorthWestern Energy serves customers primarily in Montana, South Dakota, and Nebraska. Its electric generation portfolio includes a combination of company-owned facilities and purchased power from sources such as hydroelectric, coal, natural gas, and renewable energy.