NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

NorthWestern (NASDAQ:NWE) announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.08, Zacks reports. NorthWestern had a net margin of 10.21% and a return on equity of 7.80%.

NorthWestern Stock Down 2.3%

Shares of NASDAQ NWE traded down $1.68 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $70.61. The stock had a trading volume of 398,666 shares, compared to its average volume of 527,254. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $71.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $69.75. The company has a market capitalization of $4.34 billion, a PE ratio of 25.96, a PEG ratio of 3.82 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 0.70 and a quick ratio of 0.52. NorthWestern has a 12 month low of $52.19 and a 12 month high of $75.18.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “underweight” rating and issued a $54.00 price objective on shares of NorthWestern in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of NorthWestern to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of NorthWestern from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of NorthWestern from $62.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of NorthWestern from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $56.00 to $75.50 in a research report on Wednesday, April 1st. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, NorthWestern currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $70.10.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NorthWestern

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allworth Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of NorthWestern by 263.3% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 436 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 316 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd grew its stake in NorthWestern by 3,221.4% in the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 465 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 451 shares during the period. PenderFund Capital Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of NorthWestern during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in shares of NorthWestern by 34.3% during the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 845 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after purchasing an additional 216 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of NorthWestern by 31.1% during the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,074 shares of the company’s stock worth $63,000 after purchasing an additional 255 shares during the period. 96.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About NorthWestern

NorthWestern Corporation (NASDAQ: NWE) is a regulated energy company that delivers electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers. Through its Electric Operations and Gas Operations segments, the company operates an extensive network of distribution lines, substations and pipelines. NorthWestern’s services encompass the delivery of power sourced from regional transmission systems and the procurement, storage and distribution of natural gas to end users.

Electric delivery services include the management of distribution infrastructure, customer metering and system reliability programs.