WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Downgraded to "Neutral" Rating by LADENBURG THALM/SH SH

Key Points

• LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded WEC Energy Group from “buy” to “neutral” and set a $110.50 price target, implying only about 1% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $122.41, although several firms maintain “hold” or lower ratings.
• WEC reported quarterly EPS of $0.91, exceeding the $0.80 consensus estimate, while revenue of $2.06 billion fell short of expectations. Institutional investors own 77.2% of the company, and an executive recently sold 4,665 shares.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at LADENBURG THALM/SH SH from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have a $110.50 price objective on the utilities provider's stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH's target price points to a potential upside of 1.03% from the stock's previous close.

WEC has been the topic of several other research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $127.00 price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wall Street Zen cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 24th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Friday, June 26th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of 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. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $111.00 to $117.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $122.41.

WEC Energy Group Trading Down 0.0%

Shares of WEC Energy Group stock opened at $109.38 on Tuesday. 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 business has a fifty day simple moving average of $113.78 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $113.80. WEC Energy Group has a 1 year low of $102.95 and a 1 year high of $119.91. The company has a market capitalization of $35.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 0.47.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.80 by $0.11. The company 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 quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.76 EPS. WEC Energy Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.510-5.610 EPS. Research analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group will post 5.59 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Daniel Krueger sold 4,665 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.96, for a total transaction of $517,628.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 7,346 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $815,112.16. This trade represents a 38.84% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of WEC. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 16.9% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,698 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,820,000 after purchasing an additional 2,417 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its stake in WEC Energy Group by 41.3% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 26,839 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,925,000 after purchasing an additional 7,841 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 44,286 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,616,000 after purchasing an additional 3,006 shares during the last quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 477.4% during the 2nd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 333,552 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $34,756,000 after purchasing an additional 275,786 shares during the last quarter. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 8.8% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 58,364 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $6,082,000 after purchasing an additional 4,730 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

About WEC Energy Group

WEC Energy Group is a Milwaukee, Wisconsin–based regulated energy holding company whose primary businesses are the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity and the distribution of natural gas. The company operates through a set of utility subsidiaries that provide bundled energy service, customer billing and energy-related programs to residential, commercial and industrial customers. As a regulated utility group, WEC's operations focus on delivering reliable service while managing infrastructure investment and compliance with state and federal utility regulation.

Its utility subsidiaries include well-known regional operators such as We Energies and Wisconsin Public Service, along with Chicago-area natural gas utilities that were part of the Integrys Energy Group acquisition.

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