Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Purchases 7,861 Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Key Points

• Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 3.9%, acquiring an additional 7,861 shares, bringing its total ownership to 209,174 shares valued at approximately $22.8 million.
• WEC Energy Group announced a quarterly dividend of $0.8925 per share, representing an annual yield of 3.3% with a payout ratio of 68.39%.
• Most analysts currently rate WEC Energy Group as a "Hold," with an average price target around $106.40, while recent reports have seen mixed adjustments to price targets from various brokerages.

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 3.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 209,174 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,861 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC owned about 0.07% of WEC Energy Group worth $22,796,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WEC. Marcum Wealth LLC raised its position in WEC Energy Group by 1.3% in the 1st quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 7,416 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $808,000 after buying an additional 93 shares during the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 14.3% during the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 744 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $81,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Clean Yield Group raised its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 12.6% in the first quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 867 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV lifted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.4% in the fourth quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 3,019 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $284,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.0% in the first quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,335 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $363,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.20% of the company's stock.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WEC traded down $0.32 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $110.38. 1,800,820 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,224,689. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $86.76 and a twelve month high of $111.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.15, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.42. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $106.27 and its 200-day simple moving average is $105.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $2.01 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.87 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 17.87%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.67 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, August 14th will be paid a $0.8925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $3.57 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is 68.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 35,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.73, for a total value of $3,875,550.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 274,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at $30,447,317.37. The trade was a 11.29% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Anthony Reese sold 4,177 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.30, for a total transaction of $460,723.10. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,757 shares in the company, valued at $193,797.10. This represents a 70.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 59,752 shares of company stock valued at $6,610,023 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on WEC shares. UBS Group set a $107.00 target price on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut WEC Energy Group from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $106.00 to $100.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Scotiabank set a $115.00 target price on WEC Energy Group and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays upped their target price on WEC Energy Group from $99.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded WEC Energy Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. Two investment 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. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $106.40.

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.