Tsfg LLC Boosts Stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Tsfg LLC increased its stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 4.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 2,699 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the quarter. Tsfg LLC’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $254,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Coastline Trust Co purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the second quarter worth about $38,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $50,000. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Trading Up 0.5 %

WEC stock opened at $93.85 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $96.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $92.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.13 and a twelve month high of $102.79.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.00 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.8925 per share. This is a positive change from WEC Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. This represents a $3.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.80%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 87.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $97.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Bank of America raised shares of WEC Energy Group from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $90.00 to $98.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Barclays raised WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, KeyCorp increased their price target on WEC Energy Group from $108.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.40.

Insider Transactions at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 40,269 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.56, for a total value of $4,009,181.64. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 273,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,204,570.88. The trade was a 12.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 6,720 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.89, for a total transaction of $677,980.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 45,709 shares in the company, valued at $4,611,581.01. This represents a 12.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 48,794 shares of company stock worth $4,866,579. 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.