Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC Buys New Stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Stonebridge Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,501 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $235,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Marshall Financial Group LLC increased its position in WEC Energy Group by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 2,198 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $207,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC raised its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 5,881 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $553,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance lifted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 14,090 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,325,000 after buying an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC raised its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 3,222 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $303,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 14.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 916 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $86,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

In related news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.17, for a total transaction of $119,795.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 21,951 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,286,635.67. This trade represents a 4.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 25,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.62, for a total transaction of $2,715,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 274,955 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,865,612.10. The trade was a 8.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 0.3 %

WEC traded down $0.28 on Wednesday, hitting $108.87. The company had a trading volume of 288,452 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,135,619. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.44. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $106.60 and a 200-day moving average price of $100.87. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.47 and a 12-month high of $111.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.60.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.06). WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 17.75%. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.8975 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 14th. This is a positive change from WEC Energy Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. This represents a $3.59 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.30%. WEC Energy Group's payout ratio is 73.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of WEC Energy Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of WEC Energy Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their target price for the company from $106.00 to $108.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays raised their price target on WEC Energy Group from $99.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $112.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $105.38.

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.