WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Shares Bought by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC boosted its holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 763.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 1,332,587 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 1,178,270 shares during the period. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned approximately 0.42% of WEC Energy Group worth $112,164,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Deutsche Bank AG grew its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.0% during the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 5,495,925 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $442,697,000 after buying an additional 158,652 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,295,729 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $346,021,000 after purchasing an additional 142,412 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.8% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,216,264 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $339,620,000 after purchasing an additional 155,437 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 1.4% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 3,354,181 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $270,179,000 after buying an additional 44,797 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 3.0% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,777,770 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $149,635,000 after buying an additional 51,540 shares in the last quarter. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WEC has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed 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. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered shares of WEC Energy Group from a "neutral" rating to an "underweight" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Barclays decreased their target price on WEC Energy Group from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on WEC Energy Group from $93.00 to $91.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $86.29.

Insider Activity

In related news, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the chairman now owns 274,782 shares of the company's stock, valued at $21,622,595.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other WEC Energy Group news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total transaction of $223,258.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 43,125 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,402,131.25. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of the firm's 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 sale, the chairman now directly 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. 0.44% of the stock is owned by insiders.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WEC traded down $0.11 on Tuesday, hitting $84.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,820,815 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,068,156. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.13 and a 12 month high of $93.37. The stock's 50-day moving average is $81.93 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.42 and a current ratio of 0.55. The company has a market capitalization of $26.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.40.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $2.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.92 billion. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 16.67% and a return on equity of 13.01%. WEC Energy Group's revenue was down 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 EPS for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.835 per share. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 13th. WEC Energy Group's payout ratio is currently 72.93%.

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.