WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Shares Sold by Claro Advisors LLC

Claro Advisors LLC cut its position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 8,775 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 340 shares during the quarter. Claro Advisors LLC’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $688,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of WEC. Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth $127,945,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC raised its position in WEC Energy Group by 763.5% during the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,332,587 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $112,164,000 after acquiring an additional 1,178,270 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 93.3% in the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,665,038 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $140,146,000 after purchasing an additional 803,718 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 36.0% in the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,748,141 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $143,557,000 after purchasing an additional 462,646 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $23,297,000. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

WEC Energy Group stock opened at $93.03 on Monday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.13 and a 12-month high of $93.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $29.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.44. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $84.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $82.25.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.04. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.26% and a net margin of 15.85%. The business had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 14th were given a dividend of $0.835 per share. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 14th. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 72.93%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Anthony Reese sold 1,362 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.78, for a total value of $120,918.36. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $129,796.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, VP William J. Guc sold 6,000 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.99, for a total value of $557,940.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $716,208.98. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Anthony Reese sold 1,362 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.78, for a total value of $120,918.36. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at $129,796.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 8,462 shares of company stock worth $776,608. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WEC. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on WEC Energy Group from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $98.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Barclays boosted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Bank of America raised their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday. Finally, KeyCorp reduced their target price on WEC Energy Group from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Four investment 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. According to MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $89.77.

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.