AlphaQuest LLC Raises Position in MGE Energy Inc. $MGEE

AlphaQuest LLC increased its holdings in MGE Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:MGEE) by 90.0% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 15,696 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,435 shares during the quarter. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in MGE Energy were worth $1,459,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in MGE Energy by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 769,612 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $72,314,000 after purchasing an additional 2,225 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in MGE Energy by 9,697.0% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 456,248 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,413,000 after purchasing an additional 451,591 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in MGE Energy by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 394,414 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,665,000 after purchasing an additional 1,287 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC purchased a new position in MGE Energy in the 1st quarter worth $20,910,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in MGE Energy by 49.4% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 208,936 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $19,423,000 after purchasing an additional 69,084 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.58% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on MGEE shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of MGE Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of MGE Energy from $75.00 to $74.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of MGE Energy to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Sell rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, MGE Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Sell” and a consensus price target of $74.00.

MGE Energy Price Performance

Shares of MGE Energy stock opened at $87.74 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $3.21 billion, a PE ratio of 24.37 and a beta of 0.76. MGE Energy Inc. has a 12-month low of $82.21 and a 12-month high of $109.22. The company has a quick ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 1.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $86.63 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $89.27.

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $159.45 million during the quarter. MGE Energy had a return on equity of 10.58% and a net margin of 18.24%. As a group, equities analysts expect that MGE Energy Inc. will post 3.43 EPS for the current year.

MGE Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.475 per share. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This is a positive change from MGE Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. MGE Energy’s payout ratio is presently 50.00%.

Insider Buying and Selling at MGE Energy

In related news, Director James G. Berbee bought 507 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 15th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $83.83 per share, with a total value of $42,501.81. Following the purchase, the director owned 6,329 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $530,560.07. This trade represents a 8.71% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

MGE Energy 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.