Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Sells 4,791 Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC decreased its holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 18.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 21,720 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,791 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $2,367,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WEC. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 3,828.6% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 275 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the first quarter valued at about $32,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 252.6% in the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 342 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hoey Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group in the fourth quarter worth about $42,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

WEC Energy Group Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of WEC traded up $0.54 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $104.74. The stock had a trading volume of 1,756,661 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,141,288. The stock's 50 day moving average is $106.28 and its 200 day moving average is $103.33. The firm has a market cap of $33.43 billion, a PE ratio of 20.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a current ratio of 0.50 and a quick ratio of 0.40. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $77.47 and a 1 year high of $111.00.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.95% and a return on equity of 12.94%. The firm's revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.97 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th were issued a dividend of $0.8975 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 14th. This represents a $3.59 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. This is a boost from WEC Energy Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. WEC Energy Group's payout ratio is presently 69.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

WEC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays raised their price target on WEC Energy Group from $99.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Scotiabank set a $115.00 target price on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $106.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $106.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $106.33.

Insider Transactions at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 2,155 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.77, for a total value of $232,244.35. Following the sale, the vice president owned 2,686 shares in the company, valued at $289,470.22. This trade represents a 44.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

WEC Energy Group Profile

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.