National Pension Service Cuts Stock Holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

National Pension Service lessened its position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 406,113 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 7,729 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned about 0.13% of WEC Energy Group worth $39,060,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in WEC. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 58.1% in the 2nd quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Olistico Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $29,000. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Triad Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 77.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WEC Energy Group Trading Down 0.1 %

WEC opened at $96.01 on Thursday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $75.13 and a 52 week high of $100.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $95.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $87.56. The firm has a market cap of $30.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.44.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.12. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 15.14%. The company had revenue of $1.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. WEC Energy Group’s revenue was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a $0.835 dividend. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.48%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 81.66%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on WEC. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. StockNews.com raised shares of WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America lifted 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 note on Thursday, August 29th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price target for the company. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $94.45.

Insider Transactions at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, VP William J. Guc sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.99, for a total transaction 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. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, VP William J. Guc sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.99, for a total transaction of $557,940.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $716,208.98. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.04, for a total transaction of $301,449.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $340,712.48. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% 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.