Ameritas Advisory Services LLC Trims Position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. $WEC

Key Points

• Ameritas Advisory Services cut its WEC Energy Group stake by 50% in the fourth quarter, selling nearly half its shares and ending with 13,951 shares valued at about $1.47 million.
• WEC Energy Group reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $2.45 per share on revenue of $3.43 billion, while also guiding FY2026 EPS to $5.51-$5.61.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.9525 per share, implying an annualized payout of $3.81 and a yield of about 3.4%.

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC decreased its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 50.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 13,951 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 13,959 shares during the quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC's holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $1,471,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Patrick M Sweeney & Associates Inc. now owns 2,994 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $316,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors lifted its position in WEC Energy Group by 14.9% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 28,541 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,010,000 after purchasing an additional 3,710 shares during the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in WEC Energy Group by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 31,598 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,332,000 after purchasing an additional 3,630 shares during the last quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc. lifted its position in WEC Energy Group by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc. now owns 42,194 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,450,000 after purchasing an additional 661 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Certior Financial Group LLC lifted its position in WEC Energy Group by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Certior Financial Group LLC now owns 4,043 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $426,000 after purchasing an additional 311 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

WEC Energy Group Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of WEC opened at $111.54 on Friday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $102.49 and a 1-year high of $119.62. The company has a 50-day moving average of $115.18 and a 200 day moving average of $111.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $36.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.26, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 0.68 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $2.45 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.15. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 16.25% and a return on equity of 12.72%. The company had revenue of $3.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.32 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.27 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. WEC Energy Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.510-5.610 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, May 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.9525 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 14th. This represents a $3.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.4%. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.05%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $127.00 price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $127.00 price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Mizuho set a $124.00 price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $121.00 price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Friday, February 6th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $122.44.

Insider Transactions at WEC Energy Group

In related news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,450 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $114.60, for a total transaction of $166,170.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 20,541 shares in the company, valued at $2,353,998.60. This trade represents a 6.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 5,000 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $116.55, for a total transaction of $582,750.00. Following the sale, the director owned 276,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at $32,237,730. The trade was a 1.78% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

WEC Energy Group Profile

WEC Energy Group is a Milwaukee, Wisconsin–based regulated energy holding company whose primary businesses are the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity and the distribution of natural gas. The company operates through a set of utility subsidiaries that provide bundled energy service, customer billing and energy-related programs to residential, commercial and industrial customers. As a regulated utility group, WEC's operations focus on delivering reliable service while managing infrastructure investment and compliance with state and federal utility regulation.

Its utility subsidiaries include well-known regional operators such as We Energies and Wisconsin Public Service, along with Chicago-area natural gas utilities that were part of the Integrys Energy Group acquisition.

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