Analysts Set WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Target Price at $94.45

Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) have been assigned an average rating of “Hold” from the eleven research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $94.45.

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Bank of America boosted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price target on the stock. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective 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.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $340,712.48. This represents a 46.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP William J. Guc sold 6,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.99, for a total transaction of $557,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,702 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $716,208.98. The trade was a 43.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of WEC. Vestcor Inc grew its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 5.1% in the third quarter. Vestcor Inc now owns 83,569 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,038,000 after purchasing an additional 4,093 shares during the last quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. boosted its position in WEC Energy Group by 11.7% in the 3rd quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 1,365,851 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $131,368,000 after buying an additional 142,666 shares during the period. Continuum Advisory LLC boosted its position in WEC Energy Group by 64.9% in the 3rd quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 4,349 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $418,000 after buying an additional 1,711 shares during the period. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC grew its stake in WEC Energy Group by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Drucker Wealth 3.0 LLC now owns 20,671 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,988,000 after acquiring an additional 1,060 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1.4% during the third quarter. Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank now owns 41,271 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,969,000 after acquiring an additional 551 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE WEC opened at $97.98 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $31.00 billion, a PE ratio of 23.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.44. WEC Energy Group has a 1 year low of $75.13 and a 1 year high of $100.31. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $96.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $88.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.46.

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

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a dividend of $0.835 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.41%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.66%.

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.