Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Reduces Stock Position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. $WEC

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs reduced its stake in WEC Energy Group by 33.4% during Q1, owning 944,815 shares after selling 474,625 shares, valuing its position at approximately $102.97 million.
• WEC Energy Group reported a net margin of 17.87% and earnings per share of $0.76 for the recent quarter, exceeding analysts' forecasts.
• Several analysts downgraded WEC's stock rating, with Goldman Sachs specifically lowering its target price from $106 to $100, shifting from "neutral" to "sell".

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lowered its stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 33.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 944,815 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 474,625 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned 0.30% of WEC Energy Group worth $102,966,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Horizon Investment Services LLC purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the first quarter worth approximately $379,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2,964.9% during the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 108,651 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $11,841,000 after acquiring an additional 105,106 shares during the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd purchased a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth $10,333,000. Sowell Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth $325,000. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 5.6% during the 1st quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,947 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $321,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

WEC Energy Group Stock Up 0.7%

WEC opened at $110.52 on Friday. 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, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $91.94 and a fifty-two week high of $111.90. The firm's fifty day moving average is $107.92 and its 200 day moving average is $106.83. The stock has a market cap of $35.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.44.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.71 by $0.05. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.87% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The company had revenue of $2.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.67 EPS. WEC Energy Group's revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. WEC Energy Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.170-5.270 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th were issued a $0.8925 dividend. This represents a $3.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 14th. WEC Energy Group's payout ratio is currently 68.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on WEC. Wall Street Zen cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $106.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, UBS Group set a $107.00 price target on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.40.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other WEC Energy Group news, EVP Daniel Krueger sold 5,930 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.14, for a total value of $659,060.20. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 6,606 shares in the company, valued at approximately $734,190.84. The trade was a 47.30% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Molly A. Mulroy sold 4,030 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.33, for a total transaction of $444,629.90. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,829 shares in the company, valued at approximately $643,113.57. This represents a 40.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 68,448 shares of company stock worth $7,581,132 in the last 90 days. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.

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.