Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Raises Stock Holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 18.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 33,305 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 5,191 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.'s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $3,582,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 134.2% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,047,753 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,038,931,000 after buying an additional 6,329,574 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group in the 4th quarter worth about $188,879,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 1,819,782 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 valued at $138,342,000 after purchasing an additional 1,433,522 shares during the period. Finally, Talaria Asset Management Pty Ltd bought a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $53,970,000. 77.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Trading Up 0.7%

Shares of NYSE WEC traded up $0.75 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $104.50. 1,033,837 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,150,206. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.47 and a 12-month high of $111.00. The firm has a market cap of $33.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.44. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $105.94 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.50.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.97 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th were issued a dividend of $0.8975 per share. This represents a $3.59 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. This is a boost from WEC Energy Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, May 14th. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.59%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 2,155 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.77, for a total value of $232,244.35. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 2,686 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $289,470.22. This trade represents a 44.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on WEC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised WEC Energy Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $106.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Scotiabank set a $115.00 target price on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen raised WEC Energy Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, June 29th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on WEC Energy Group from $99.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $106.33.

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.