WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Hits New 12-Month Low - Here's Why

Key Points

• WEC Energy Group shares fell to a new 52-week low, trading as low as $99.80, below its 50-day and 200-day moving averages of $107.00 and $111.76, respectively.
• Analyst sentiment remains cautiously positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $121.91, despite several firms recently lowering their targets.
• The company reported quarterly EPS of $0.91, beating estimates of $0.80, while revenue rose 2.6% year over year to $2.06 billion. WEC also maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.9525 per share, representing a 3.8% annualized yield.

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) shares reached a new 52-week low on Thursday. The company traded as low as $99.80 and last traded at $99.9450, with a volume of 109436 shares. The stock had previously closed at $100.78.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WEC has been the subject of several recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on WEC Energy Group from $120.00 to $117.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $120.00 to $124.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. KeyCorp decreased their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $126.00 to $117.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Finally, Truist Financial cut their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $122.00 to $114.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 13th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WEC Energy Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $121.91.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 0.53 and a quick ratio of 0.39. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $107.00 and a 200 day simple moving average of $111.76. The company has a market cap of $32.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.12 and a beta of 0.47.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $2.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.11 billion. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 16.69% and a return on equity of 12.90%. WEC Energy Group's revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.76 earnings per share. WEC Energy Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.510-5.610 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 14th were issued a dividend of $0.9525 per share. This represents a $3.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 14th. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is 73.84%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 980 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.58, for a total value of $103,468.40. Following the sale, the director directly owned 19,588 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,068,101.04. This trade represents a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.46% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of WEC Energy Group

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEC. Annex Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 8.6% during the 2nd quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 121,431 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $14,179,000 after purchasing an additional 9,591 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 106.3% in the 1st quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 44,046 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $5,099,000 after purchasing an additional 22,697 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $2,783,000. DAVENPORT & Co LLC increased its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 15.3% during the 2nd quarter. DAVENPORT & Co LLC now owns 96,430 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $11,260,000 after purchasing an additional 12,773 shares during the period. Finally, Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the second quarter valued at about $3,773,000. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

WEC Energy Group Company Profile

WEC Energy Group, Inc is an energy holding company that provides electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. Its operations include electric generation, transmission, distribution, and natural gas distribution, as well as related energy infrastructure and renewable energy activities.

The company serves customers primarily in Wisconsin and parts of Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois through utilities including We Energies, Wisconsin Public Service, Upper Michigan Energy Resources, Minnesota Energy Resources, North Shore Gas, and Peoples Gas.

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