Lifeworks Advisors LLC Makes New $493,000 Investment in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Lifeworks Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 4,523 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $493,000.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of WEC. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 134.2% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,047,753 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,038,931,000 after purchasing an additional 6,329,574 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 12,777.6% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,834,024 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $199,872,000 after purchasing an additional 1,819,782 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 3,815.2% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 1,471,096 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $138,342,000 after purchasing an additional 1,433,522 shares during the period. Talaria Asset Management Pty Ltd purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $53,970,000. Finally, Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 15.4% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 3,935,857 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $370,128,000 after purchasing an additional 526,014 shares during the period. 77.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on WEC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised WEC Energy Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $106.00 to $108.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered WEC Energy Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Barclays lifted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $99.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $105.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered WEC Energy Group from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $106.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.40.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 0.0%

NYSE:WEC traded down $0.01 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $109.53. 1,320,699 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,678,526. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.35, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 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 $83.13 and a 1 year high of $111.00. The business's 50-day moving average price is $105.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $104.79.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.81 billion. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.95% and a return on equity of 12.94%. WEC Energy Group's revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.97 EPS. 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be paid a $0.8925 dividend. This represents a $3.57 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 14th. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 69.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling at WEC Energy Group

In other news, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 2,155 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $107.77, for a total value of $232,244.35. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 2,686 shares in the company, valued at $289,470.22. The trade was a 44.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.