CENTRAL TRUST Co Cuts Stock Position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

CENTRAL TRUST Co cut its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 22.7% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 6,236 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,832 shares during the quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $600,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of WEC. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 36.7% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,566,001 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $201,328,000 after buying an additional 688,812 shares in the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC grew its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 36.0% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 10,220.1% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 303,515 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,192,000 after purchasing an additional 300,574 shares during the period. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the first quarter valued at $23,297,000. Finally, Raymond James & Associates grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 26.0% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,283,994 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $123,494,000 after buying an additional 264,654 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.75, for a total transaction of $31,412.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,377 shares in the company, valued at $213,335.75. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 750 shares of the company’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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 21,876 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,934,932.20. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 350 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.75, for a total value of $31,412.50. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,377 shares in the company, valued at $213,335.75. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 11,702 shares of company stock worth $1,078,058. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

WEC Energy Group Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of WEC stock opened at $97.19 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $30.69 billion, a PE ratio of 21.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.44. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $75.13 and a 1 year high of $100.31. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $95.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $86.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The business 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%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.92 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a $0.835 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.44%. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is 72.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Scotiabank raised their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price objective for the company. KeyCorp boosted their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $94.45.

WEC Energy Group 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.