Analysts Offer Predictions for WEC Energy Group, Inc.’s FY2024 Earnings (NYSE:WEC)

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) – Analysts at Zacks Research lifted their FY2024 earnings per share (EPS) estimates for WEC Energy Group in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday, October 1st. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now expects that the utilities provider will earn $4.87 per share for the year, up from their prior forecast of $4.86. The consensus estimate for WEC Energy Group’s current full-year earnings is $4.87 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for WEC Energy Group’s Q4 2024 earnings at $1.28 EPS, Q1 2025 earnings at $2.15 EPS, Q3 2025 earnings at $1.07 EPS, Q1 2026 earnings at $2.20 EPS and Q3 2026 earnings at $1.17 EPS.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.04. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 15.85% and a return on equity of 12.26%. The company had revenue of $1.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.92 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year.

Several other brokerages also recently commented on WEC. StockNews.com downgraded WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, August 9th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on WEC Energy Group in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $98.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 21st. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $91.69.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of WEC stock opened at $96.26 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $30.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.02, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.44. 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’s fifty day moving average price is $91.95 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.74. WEC Energy Group has a one year low of $75.13 and a one year high of $97.08.

Institutional Trading of WEC Energy Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northern Trust Corp lifted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,071,148 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $342,669,000 after acquiring an additional 116,219 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 36.7% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,566,001 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $201,328,000 after purchasing an additional 688,812 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 11.8% during the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,954,778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $153,372,000 after purchasing an additional 206,637 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.5% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,782,939 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $139,889,000 after purchasing an additional 61,019 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group in the 1st quarter worth about $127,945,000. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 350 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.75, for a total value of $31,412.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $213,335.75. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.45, for a total value of $66,337.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 21,876 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,934,932.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 350 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.75, for a total transaction of $31,412.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $213,335.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 11,702 shares of company stock valued at $1,078,058 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 14th were given a $0.835 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, August 14th. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.47%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.93%.

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.