T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. Increases Holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. $WEC

Key Points

• T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. significantly increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 1,529.3%, acquiring 709,209 shares worth approximately $77.29 million.
• WEC Energy Group reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.76, surpassing analysts' expectations of $0.71, driven by a revenue of $2.01 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.8925, resulting in a 3.3% yield, despite the dividend payout ratio being 68.39%.

T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 1,529.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 709,209 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 665,681 shares during the period. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.22% of WEC Energy Group worth $77,290,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Hughes Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 252.6% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 342 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $37,000 after purchasing an additional 245 shares during the period. Creekmur Asset Management LLC grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 2,420.0% in the 1st quarter. Creekmur Asset Management LLC now owns 378 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 363 shares during the period. Finally, Stephens Consulting LLC grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 138.6% in the 1st quarter. Stephens Consulting LLC now owns 544 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

Shares of WEC traded up $0.51 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $107.67. 1,239,909 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,212,268. The company has a market cap of $34.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.42. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $91.89 and a 52-week high of $111.90. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The company's 50-day moving average price is $107.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $106.47.

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

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders 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 yield of 3.3%. WEC Energy Group's payout ratio is presently 68.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on WEC. UBS Group set a $107.00 target price on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Scotiabank set a $115.00 price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $106.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $106.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other WEC Energy Group news, EVP Molly A. Mulroy sold 4,030 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.33, for a total value of $444,629.90. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 5,829 shares in the company, valued at $643,113.57. The trade was a 40.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 9,231 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.88, for a total transaction of $1,023,533.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 56,443 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,258,399.84. The trade was a 14.06% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 68,448 shares of company stock worth $7,581,132. 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.