Van ECK Associates Corp Has $6.41 Million Position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Van ECK Associates Corp reduced its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 76,198 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,025 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $6,413,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Dearborn Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 29.2% during the 4th quarter. Dearborn Partners LLC now owns 582,421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $49,022,000 after acquiring an additional 131,797 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL now owns 428,408 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,059,000 after acquiring an additional 14,084 shares in the last quarter. abrdn plc boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 72.6% during the 4th quarter. abrdn plc now owns 129,890 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,933,000 after acquiring an additional 54,623 shares in the last quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 13.8% during the 3rd quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 205,489 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $16,552,000 after acquiring an additional 24,892 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Great Lakes Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter. Great Lakes Advisors LLC now owns 44,471 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,582,000 after acquiring an additional 1,010 shares in the last quarter. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on WEC shares. Barclays cut their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, February 8th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and cut their price target for the company from $90.00 to $84.00 in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $93.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned 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 $86.29.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

In related news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total transaction of $223,258.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 43,125 shares in the company, valued at $3,402,131.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.69, for a total transaction of $2,925,694.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 274,782 shares in the company, valued at $21,622,595.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total transaction of $223,258.70. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 43,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,402,131.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:WEC opened at $83.22 on Friday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a one year low of $75.13 and a one year high of $96.17. The company has a 50 day moving average of $80.69 and a 200-day moving average of $81.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.40. The stock has a market cap of $26.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.17, a P/E/G ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.40.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.07. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 16.67% and a return on equity of 13.01%. The company had revenue of $2.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.92 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.61 EPS. WEC Energy Group’s revenue was down 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast 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 disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.835 per share. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 13th. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.93%.

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.