MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) Given New $80.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) had its price target lifted by Morgan Stanley from $78.00 to $80.00 in a research report report published on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an underweight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Separately, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised MGE Energy to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Monday.

MGE Energy Stock Performance

Shares of MGEE stock opened at $92.56 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 0.94. MGE Energy has a fifty-two week low of $72.27 and a fifty-two week high of $109.22. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $90.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.36. The firm has a market cap of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.31 and a beta of 0.72.

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.84 by ($0.23). MGE Energy had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 17.70%. The firm had revenue of $171.42 million during the quarter. Analysts predict that MGE Energy will post 3.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGE Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Saturday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.94%. MGE Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.05%.

Insider Transactions at MGE Energy

In related news, Director James G. Berbee purchased 446 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $90.83 per share, for a total transaction of $40,510.18. Following the purchase, the director now owns 11,532 shares in the company, valued at $1,047,451.56. The trade was a 4.02 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.19% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of MGE Energy

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp boosted its stake in shares of MGE Energy by 0.5% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,460,360 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $133,550,000 after acquiring an additional 7,294 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in MGE Energy by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 863,707 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $79,001,000 after purchasing an additional 5,796 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in MGE Energy by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 769,612 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $72,314,000 after purchasing an additional 2,225 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in MGE Energy by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 432,877 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,673,000 after purchasing an additional 7,416 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in MGE Energy by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 393,127 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,938,000 after purchasing an additional 24,605 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 52.58% of the company’s stock.

MGE Energy Company Profile

MGE Energy, Inc, through its subsidiaries, operates as a public utility holding company primarily in the United States. It operates through Regulated Electric Utility Operations; Regulated Gas Utility Operations; Nonregulated Energy Operations; Transmission Investments; and All Other segments. The company generates, purchases, and distributes electricity and natural gas in Wisconsin and Iowa; owns and leases electric generating capacity; and plans, constructs, operates, maintains, and expands transmission facilities to provide transmission power services.