WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Receives $101.88 Consensus Price Target from Brokerages

Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the eight research firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $101.88.

A number of research firms recently commented on WEC. StockNews.com cut WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays raised WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $89.00 to $93.00 in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Bank of America upgraded WEC Energy Group from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $90.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, KeyCorp boosted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $108.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE WEC opened at $106.07 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.49. WEC Energy Group has a 52 week low of $76.50 and a 52 week high of $106.75. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $98.19 and a 200-day simple moving average of $96.69. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.06). The company had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 17.75%. The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.10 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that WEC Energy Group will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.835 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.15%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 73.91%.

Insider Transactions at WEC Energy Group

In related news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the director now owns 21,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,286,635.67. This represents a 4.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of WEC Energy Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of WEC. Creative Planning increased its position in WEC Energy Group by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 57,528 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,533,000 after purchasing an additional 2,532 shares in the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC increased its position in WEC Energy Group by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 132,214 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $12,716,000 after purchasing an additional 11,198 shares in the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in WEC Energy Group by 24.4% during the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 11,751 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,130,000 after purchasing an additional 2,307 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank acquired a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $792,000. Finally, Stanley Laman Group Ltd. acquired a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $227,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

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.