WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Receives $86.64 Average PT from Brokerages

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) has received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $86.64.

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on WEC shares. Barclays cut their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 13th.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE WEC opened at $82.59 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $26.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $80.50 and its 200 day moving average price is $81.43. WEC Energy Group has a 1 year low of $75.13 and a 1 year high of $96.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.55.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.82 billion. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 14.98% and a return on equity of 12.17%. WEC Energy Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.80 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that WEC Energy Group will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be paid a $0.835 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 13th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.04%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.15%.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total value of $223,258.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 43,125 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,402,131.25. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.69, for a total transaction of $2,925,694.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now owns 274,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,622,595.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total transaction of $223,258.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 43,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,402,131.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WEC Energy Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. grew its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1,137.6% during the 1st quarter. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. now owns 70,689 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,805,000 after buying an additional 64,977 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 59,299 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,870,000 after purchasing an additional 1,584 shares during the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 1.9% in the 1st quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 343,348 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,196,000 after purchasing an additional 6,488 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 18.9% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 8,969 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $737,000 after purchasing an additional 1,425 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 63.2% in the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 98,397 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,793,000 after acquiring an additional 38,112 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

About WEC Energy Group

WEC Energy Group, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides regulated natural gas and electricity, and renewable and nonregulated renewable energy services in the United States. It operates through Wisconsin, Illinois, Other States, Electric Transmission, and Non-Utility Energy Infrastructure segments.