Avantax Advisory Services Inc. Has $789,000 Stock Position in MGE Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGEE)

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. reduced its position in MGE Energy, Inc. (NASDAQ:MGEE) by 14.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 8,393 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,413 shares during the quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in MGE Energy were worth $789,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its position in MGE Energy by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 7,079 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $665,000 after purchasing an additional 116 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC lifted its position in MGE Energy by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 4,922 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $462,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the period. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. lifted its position in MGE Energy by 88.9% in the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 357 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 168 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MGE Energy by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 7,266 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $683,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the period. Finally, Choreo LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MGE Energy by 10.8% during the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 2,526 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $238,000 after acquiring an additional 247 shares during the period. 52.58% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on MGEE shares. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on MGE Energy from $78.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised MGE Energy to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Monday.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director James G. Berbee bought 446 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $90.83 per share, for a total transaction of $40,510.18. Following the transaction, the director now owns 11,532 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,047,451.56. This represents a 4.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.19% of the company’s stock.

MGE Energy Stock Performance

MGE Energy stock opened at $92.56 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $90.82 and a 200 day simple moving average of $93.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.31 and a beta of 0.72. MGE Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $72.27 and a 12-month high of $109.22.

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.61 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by ($0.23). The firm had revenue of $171.42 million during the quarter. MGE Energy had a return on equity of 10.18% and a net margin of 17.70%. On average, research analysts anticipate that MGE Energy, Inc. will post 3.43 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MGE Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 15th. Investors of record on Saturday, March 1st were given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.94%. MGE Energy’s payout ratio is 54.05%.

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.