WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Shares Purchased by Balentine LLC

Balentine LLC raised its position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 33.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,518 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,619 shares during the quarter. Balentine LLC’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $549,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 13,401 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,079,000 after buying an additional 551 shares during the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the third quarter valued at about $81,000. US Bancorp DE raised its position in WEC Energy Group by 2.2% in the third quarter. US Bancorp DE now owns 453,206 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,432,000 after acquiring an additional 9,863 shares in the last quarter. United Capital Management of KS Inc. raised its position in WEC Energy Group by 3.0% in the third quarter. United Capital Management of KS Inc. now owns 23,995 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,933,000 after acquiring an additional 706 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NBC Securities Inc. bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the third quarter worth about $66,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 0.1 %

Shares of WEC Energy Group stock opened at $84.58 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $26.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.47, a PEG ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $81.93 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $81.63. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.13 and a 12-month high of $93.37.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.92 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 13.01% and a net margin of 16.67%. The company’s revenue was down 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.61 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.835 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 13th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.95%. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 72.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on WEC shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $93.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 2nd. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut WEC Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $90.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on WEC Energy Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 target price on the stock. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.29.

Insider Transactions at WEC Energy Group

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