2,033 Shares in WEC Energy Group, Inc. $WEC Purchased by MQS Management LLC

MQS Management LLC purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 2,033 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $212,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,712 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $595,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the period. Manchester Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 14.3% during the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 744 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $81,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares during the period. Liberty Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.8% during the 2nd quarter. Liberty Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,649 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $276,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Callan Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. Callan Capital LLC now owns 3,845 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $419,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System grew its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 17,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,864,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

In other news, VP Anthony Reese sold 4,177 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.30, for a total transaction of $460,723.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 1,757 shares in the company, valued at approximately $193,797.10. This represents a 70.39% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Molly A. Mulroy sold 4,030 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.33, for a total value of $444,629.90. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 5,829 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $643,113.57. This trade represents a 40.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 68,448 shares of company stock worth $7,581,132. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on WEC Energy Group in a report on Monday. They set an “overweight” rating and a $124.00 target price for the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded WEC Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 13th. Wall Street Zen upgraded WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, October 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada set a $131.00 target price on WEC Energy Group in a report on Monday. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on WEC Energy Group from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, seven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $120.14.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

WEC Energy Group stock opened at $115.32 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $111.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $108.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.12 billion, a PE ratio of 22.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.55. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a one year low of $91.94 and a one year high of $118.18.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, September 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The company had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 17.87%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.8925 per share. This represents a $3.57 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is 68.39%.

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.