Asset Management One Co. Ltd. Lowers Stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. $WEC

Key Points

• Asset Management One Co. Ltd. has reduced its stake in WEC Energy Group by 1.5%, now owning approximately 0.05% of the company, valued at around $17.4 million.
• A significant share transaction was carried out by CEO Scott J. Lauber, who sold 9,231 shares worth over $1 million, resulting in a decrease of 14% of his ownership.
• Analysts have raised their price targets for WEC Energy Group, with Scotiabank boosting its target from $115 to $129 and several firms giving the stock a range of ratings from "Buy" to "Hold."

Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lowered its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 1.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 167,291 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 2,500 shares during the period. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. owned approximately 0.05% of WEC Energy Group worth $17,432,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. FSM Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $271,000. Turning Point Benefit Group Inc. raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 8.0% during the 2nd quarter. Turning Point Benefit Group Inc. now owns 6,068 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $632,000 after acquiring an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 14.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 12,587 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,312,000 after acquiring an additional 1,548 shares in the last quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 4.5% during the 2nd quarter. Principle Wealth Partners LLC now owns 2,895 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $302,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LifeWealth Investments LLC raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 3.0% during the 2nd quarter. LifeWealth Investments LLC now owns 3,690 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $385,000 after acquiring an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 9,231 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.88, for a total value of $1,023,533.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 56,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,258,399.84. This represents a 14.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 5,960 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.98, for a total transaction of $661,440.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 274,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,516,059.62. The trade was a 2.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 68,448 shares of company stock valued at $7,581,132. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday. BTIG Research raised shares of WEC Energy Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday. Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Cowen assumed coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. They issued a "hold" rating for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $118.83.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of WEC stock opened at $115.83 on Friday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a one year low of $91.94 and a one year high of $118.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.55. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $111.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $108.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.47.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.87% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter. Sell-side analysts anticipate that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be given a $0.8925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $3.57 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 68.39%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.