AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Purchases New Stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 94,814 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $10,333,000.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in WEC Energy Group during the first quarter worth $325,000. CWA Asset Management Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 5.6% in the first quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,947 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $321,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in WEC Energy Group by 16.7% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 245,016 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $26,702,000 after purchasing an additional 34,986 shares during the period. DAVENPORT & Co LLC lifted its stake in WEC Energy Group by 55.0% during the first quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 35,710 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,892,000 after purchasing an additional 12,665 shares during the period. Finally, OLD Republic International Corp lifted its stake in WEC Energy Group by 1.2% during the first quarter. OLD Republic International Corp now owns 336,279 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $36,648,000 after purchasing an additional 3,948 shares during the period. 77.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 2,155 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.77, for a total value of $232,244.35. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,686 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $289,470.22. This represents a 44.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $99.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 29th. UBS Group set a $107.00 price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of WEC Energy Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $106.00 to $108.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of WEC Energy Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday, July 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $106.40.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WEC opened at $107.76 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $34.39 billion, a PE ratio of 21.01, a PEG ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $81.45 and a 1-year high of $111.00. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $105.26 and a 200 day moving average price of $104.31.

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

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a $0.8925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $3.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.31%. WEC Energy Group's payout ratio is 69.59%.

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.

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