BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S Decreases Stock Position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S cut its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 23.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,368 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,306 shares during the quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $620,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WEC. Principal Securities Inc. bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $983,000. Dearborn Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 29.2% in the 4th quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 582,421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $49,022,000 after purchasing an additional 131,797 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 6.7% during the 4th quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 316,255 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,391,000 after purchasing an additional 19,867 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL now owns 428,408 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,059,000 after buying an additional 14,084 shares during the period. Finally, abrdn plc raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 72.6% in the fourth quarter. abrdn plc now owns 129,890 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,933,000 after buying an additional 54,623 shares in the last quarter. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on WEC shares. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $93.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Scotiabank lowered 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 research report on Monday, April 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com raised WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 9th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $86.29.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of WEC stock opened at $80.67 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $81.97 and a 200-day moving average price of $81.63. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $75.13 and a 52 week high of $93.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.48 billion, a PE ratio of 17.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.40.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.90 by $0.07. The business 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%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.61 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.86 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 13th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.14%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.93%.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

In other news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the firm’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 43,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,402,131.25. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other 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 in the company, valued at $21,622,595.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the firm’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 owns 43,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,402,131.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.