NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) Declares Quarterly Dividend of $0.66

NorthWestern Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:NWE) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 13th,Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a dividend of 0.66 per share on Monday, March 31st. This represents a $2.64 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.99%. 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.

NorthWestern Energy Group has raised its dividend payment by an average of 1.6% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 19 years. NorthWestern Energy Group has a dividend payout ratio of 67.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect NorthWestern Energy Group to earn $3.63 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.60 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 71.6%.

NorthWestern Energy Group Stock Down 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE:NWE traded down $1.25 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $52.87. 919,400 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 364,986. NorthWestern Energy Group has a fifty-two week low of $46.40 and a fifty-two week high of $57.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $53.11 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $54.14. The firm has a market cap of $3.24 billion, a PE ratio of 14.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.48.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $58.00 to $61.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Guggenheim upgraded shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $57.50 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of NorthWestern Energy Group from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. 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, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.42.

Insider Activity at NorthWestern Energy Group

In other news, Director Britt E. Ide sold 700 shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $53.57, for a total value of $37,499.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 10,888 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $583,270.16. This trade represents a 6.04 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Anthony Thomas Clark sold 7,400 shares of NorthWestern Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.95, for a total transaction of $384,430.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 16,816 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $873,591.20. This trade represents a 30.56 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.94% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About NorthWestern Energy Group

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.