WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Brokerages

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $86.64.

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Scotiabank reduced their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $96.00 to $90.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. KeyCorp boosted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut WEC Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Barclays cut their price target on WEC Energy Group from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 8th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, February 8th.

WEC Energy Group Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of WEC opened at $81.50 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $80.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.43. The stock has a market cap of $25.71 billion, a PE ratio of 19.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.40. WEC Energy Group has a 12 month low of $75.13 and a 12 month high of $97.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.40.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.08 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.82 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.17% and a net margin of 14.98%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 13.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.80 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be issued a $0.835 dividend. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 13th. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 79.15%.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

In related news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 43,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,402,131.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chairman now directly owns 274,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,622,595.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total value of $223,258.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 43,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,402,131.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WEC Energy Group

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Northwest Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Finally, First United Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. 77.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.