WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) VP Sells 18,380 Shares of Company Stock

Key Points

• WEC Energy Group VP Margaret Kelsey sold 18,380 shares for about $2.16 million, reducing her direct stake by 60.15% to 12,178 shares.
• Quarterly earnings were stronger than expected: EPS was $1.18 versus a $0.97 consensus, and revenue rose 8.9% year over year to $2.29 billion.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.9525 per share, equivalent to a 3.2% annualized yield. Analysts’ consensus rating was Hold, with an average price target of $117.88.

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) VP Margaret Kelsey sold 18,380 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $117.37, for a total transaction of $2,157,260.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 12,178 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,429,331.86. This represents a 60.15% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

WEC Energy Group Stock Up 0.2%

WEC opened at $117.27 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 0.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. The stock has a market cap of $38.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.28, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.43. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $99.80 and a twelve month high of $120.15. The company's 50-day moving average price is $107.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $111.78.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.27 billion. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.54% and a return on equity of 13.49%. The company's revenue was up 8.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.83 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.61 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be given a $0.9525 dividend. This represents a $3.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 13th. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently commented on WEC. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on WEC Energy Group from $120.00 to $116.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Scotiabank boosted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $117.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $124.00 to $122.00 and set a "sector perform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 26th. KeyCorp cut their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $117.00 to $111.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Finally, HSBC started coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research note on Thursday, October 22nd. They issued a "hold" rating and a $106.50 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $117.88.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WEC Energy Group

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 180.8% in the third quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. now owns 424 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 273 shares in the last quarter. Rathbones Group PLC boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.2% in the third quarter. Rathbones Group PLC now owns 862,908 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $86,964,000 after acquiring an additional 27,078 shares during the period. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1.2% in the third quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. now owns 10,743 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,083,000 after acquiring an additional 129 shares during the period. TIAA CREF Individual & Institutional Services LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,496,000. Finally, Private Wealth Asset Management LLC grew its stake in WEC Energy Group by 8,100.0% during the third quarter. Private Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 2,788 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $281,000 after acquiring an additional 2,754 shares in the last quarter. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Company Profile

WEC Energy Group is a regulated energy holding company based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Through its subsidiaries, it generates, transmits and distributes electricity and provides natural gas service to residential, commercial and industrial customers. The company's utility operations serve communities across Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan and Minnesota. Its businesses include electric and gas utilities, as well as natural gas storage and related energy services. WEC Energy Group adopted its current name in 2015, following the combination of Wisconsin Energy Corporation and Integrys Energy Group.

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