Boston Trust Walden Corp Acquires 16,655 Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. $WEC

Key Points

• Boston Trust Walden Corp increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 13.3%, acquiring an additional 16,655 shares, bringing its total ownership to 141,921 shares valued at approximately $14.8 million.
• WEC Energy Group's analysts have mixed ratings, with six analysts giving it a Buy rating, while Goldman Sachs downgraded it to Sell, reflecting varied investor sentiment.
• The company recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.8925 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.1% amid a dividend payout ratio of 68.39%.

Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 13.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 141,921 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 16,655 shares during the period. Boston Trust Walden Corp's holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $14,788,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of WEC. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $403,372,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 34.9% during the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,213,304 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $567,727,000 after acquiring an additional 1,349,522 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 16.6% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,103,604 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $556,191,000 after acquiring an additional 726,267 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 1,529.3% during the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 709,209 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $77,290,000 after acquiring an additional 665,681 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 20.6% during the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,519,401 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $274,564,000 after acquiring an additional 430,269 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on WEC shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of WEC Energy Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Wall Street Zen raised shares of WEC Energy Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, October 4th. Scotiabank upped their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $129.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $117.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $106.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, WEC Energy Group presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $112.20.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

Shares of WEC Energy Group stock opened at $116.55 on Wednesday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $91.94 and a 52-week high of $117.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a fifty day moving average of $110.15 and a 200-day moving average of $107.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.55.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.87% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The company had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter. Equities research analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th were paid a $0.8925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $3.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is 68.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 5,960 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.98, for a total transaction of $661,440.80. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 274,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,516,059.62. This represents a 2.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $1,023,533.28. Following the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 56,443 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,258,399.84. The trade was a 14.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 68,448 shares of company stock worth $7,581,132 in the last ninety days. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

WEC Energy Group Company 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.

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