WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Shares Purchased by Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 5.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,223,185 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 58,695 shares during the period. WEC Energy Group accounts for about 1.2% of Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. owned approximately 0.39% of WEC Energy Group worth $95,971,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Northern Trust Corp increased its position 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 purchasing an additional 116,219 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased 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 valued at $201,328,000 after acquiring an additional 688,812 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 11.8% in the 2nd quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,954,778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $153,372,000 after acquiring an additional 206,637 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,782,939 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $139,889,000 after acquiring an additional 61,019 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Confluence Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $127,945,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.04, for a total transaction of $301,449.60. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,662 shares in the company, valued at $340,712.48. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.45, for a total value of $66,337.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,876 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,934,932.20. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.04, for a total value of $301,449.60. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $340,712.48. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,702 shares of company stock valued at $1,078,058 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:WEC opened at $95.26 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $91.11 and a 200-day simple moving average of $84.41. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.13 and a twelve month high of $96.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The company has a market capitalization of $30.09 billion, a PE ratio of 20.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.44.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.67 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.77 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.87 billion. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 15.85% and a return on equity of 12.26%. WEC Energy Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.92 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 14th were paid a dividend of $0.835 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, August 14th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.51%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on WEC Energy Group from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Barclays lifted their target price on WEC Energy Group from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 6th. KeyCorp increased their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 16th. StockNews.com cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on WEC Energy Group in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price target on the stock. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $91.31.

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.