FY2024 EPS Estimates for WEC Energy Group, Inc. Decreased by Analyst (NYSE:WEC)

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) - Stock analysts at Zacks Research reduced their FY2024 EPS estimates for WEC Energy Group in a research note issued on Wednesday, May 22nd. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the utilities provider will earn $4.80 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $4.86. The consensus estimate for WEC Energy Group's current full-year earnings is $4.87 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for WEC Energy Group's Q4 2024 earnings at $1.03 EPS and Q2 2025 earnings at $0.78 EPS.

Other analysts have also issued reports about the stock. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Scotiabank lowered their price target on WEC Energy Group from $96.00 to $90.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on WEC Energy Group in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $88.00 price target for the company. Barclays lowered their price target on WEC Energy Group from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on WEC Energy Group from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, WEC Energy Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $86.29.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 2.0 %

Shares of WEC stock traded down $1.64 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $80.67. 4,504,766 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,136,664. The business's fifty day moving average is $81.97 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.42. WEC Energy Group has a 12-month low of $75.13 and a 12-month high of $93.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.40.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.07. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 16.67% and a return on equity of 13.01%. The firm had revenue of $2.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.61 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.835 per share. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.14%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 13th. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 72.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.69, for a total transaction of $2,925,694.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chairman now directly owns 274,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,622,595.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other WEC Energy Group news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total value of $223,258.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 43,125 shares in the company, valued at $3,402,131.25. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.69, for a total value of $2,925,694.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 274,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $21,622,595.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of WEC. Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group in the first quarter worth $127,945,000. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 5,257.7% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 1,465,114 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $118,015,000 after buying an additional 1,437,768 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 763.5% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,332,587 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $112,164,000 after buying an additional 1,178,270 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 93.3% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,665,038 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $140,146,000 after buying an additional 803,718 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 36.0% in the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,748,141 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $143,557,000 after buying an additional 462,646 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

WEC Energy Group Company 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.