WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Shares Sold by Rathbones Group PLC

Key Points

• Rathbones Group PLC reduced its stake in WEC Energy Group by 2.6% during the first quarter, now owning 763,981 shares worth approximately $83.26 million.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings of $0.76 per share, exceeding estimates and showing a revenue increase of 13.4% year-over-year, reaching $2.01 billion.
• WEC Energy Group announced a quarterly dividend of $0.8925, which results in an annual yield of 3.3%, with a payout ratio of 68.39%.

Rathbones Group PLC decreased its position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 2.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 763,981 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 20,040 shares during the period. Rathbones Group PLC owned about 0.24% of WEC Energy Group worth $83,259,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 54.1% in the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 19,419 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,826,000 after acquiring an additional 6,818 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 31,327 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,945,000 after acquiring an additional 4,182 shares during the last quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in WEC Energy Group in the fourth quarter valued at $285,000. Advisors Capital Management LLC increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Advisors Capital Management LLC now owns 4,675 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $440,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 20,285 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,908,000 after acquiring an additional 284 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on WEC shares. UBS Group set a $107.00 target price on WEC Energy Group and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Wall Street Zen cut WEC Energy Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut WEC Energy Group from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $106.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Scotiabank set a $115.00 price target on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WEC Energy Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $106.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other WEC Energy Group news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 9,231 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.88, for a total value of $1,023,533.28. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 56,443 shares in the company, valued at $6,258,399.84. This represents a 14.06% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Molly A. Mulroy sold 4,030 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was 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 directly owned 5,829 shares of the company's stock, valued at $643,113.57. The trade was a 40.88% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 70,603 shares of company stock worth $7,813,377. 0.50% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

Shares of WEC traded up $0.50 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $109.93. 2,698,935 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,090,985. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $88.14 and a 52-week high of $111.90. The company's 50-day moving average price is $106.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $105.95. The company has a market cap of $35.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.42.

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. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.87% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The business 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. The business's quarterly revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 announced 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. This represents a $3.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 14th. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 68.39%.

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.