MGE Energy Inc. $MGEE Stake Boosted by Merit Financial Group LLC

Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of MGE Energy Inc. (NASDAQ:MGEE) by 259.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 23,780 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,161 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC’s holdings in MGE Energy were worth $1,865,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its stake in MGE Energy by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 19,776 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,550,000 after purchasing an additional 273 shares during the last quarter. eCIO Inc. bought a new position in MGE Energy during the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its stake in MGE Energy by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 24,048 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,886,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in MGE Energy by 27.6% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 11,490 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $901,000 after purchasing an additional 2,485 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in MGE Energy by 49.1% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 84,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,130,000 after purchasing an additional 27,899 shares during the last quarter. 52.58% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of MGE Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on MGE Energy from $79.00 to $78.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised MGE Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, March 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $80.50.

MGE Energy Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ MGEE opened at $78.65 on Wednesday. MGE Energy Inc. has a 1-year low of $72.17 and a 1-year high of $94.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $78.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.89 billion, a PE ratio of 21.14 and a beta of 0.79.

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.64. MGE Energy had a return on equity of 10.60% and a net margin of 18.27%.The firm had revenue of $189.55 million for the quarter. On average, research analysts expect that MGE Energy Inc. will post 3.92 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director James G. Berbee bought 373 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $77.74 per share, with a total value of $28,997.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $727,801.88. This represents a 4.15% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.41% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About MGE Energy

MGE Energy, Inc is a public utility holding company headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin. Through its principal subsidiary, Madison Gas and Electric Company (MGE), the company provides regulated electric and natural gas distribution services to residential, commercial and industrial customers in south-central Wisconsin. MGE Energy’s operations encompass the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity as well as the purchase and distribution of natural gas, with an emphasis on reliable service and system resilience.

Since reorganizing as a holding company in 2001, MGE Energy has expanded its portfolio to include nonregulated subsidiaries involved in renewable energy development, energy services and infrastructure support.