WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Stock Holdings Decreased by Confluence Investment Management LLC

Confluence Investment Management LLC lowered its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 1.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,489,994 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 20,388 shares during the quarter. WEC Energy Group accounts for 1.9% of Confluence Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Confluence Investment Management LLC owned about 0.47% of WEC Energy Group worth $140,119,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 58.1% during the second quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the period. Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $31,000. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL bought a new position in WEC Energy Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $38,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the third quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of WEC Energy Group stock traded up $0.46 during trading on Thursday, reaching $94.50. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 177,805 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,083,027. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $75.13 and a 1-year high of $102.79. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $97.00 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The company has a market cap of $29.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.46.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last issued its quarterly 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. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 15.14%. The business had revenue of $1.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.00 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.89 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.8925 per share. This is an increase from WEC Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. This represents a $3.57 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.78%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is presently 87.29%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 1,805 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.40, for a total value of $179,417.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 273,248 shares in the company, valued at $27,160,851.20. This represents a 0.66 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 6,720 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.89, for a total transaction of $677,980.80. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 45,709 shares in the company, valued at $4,611,581.01. This trade represents a 12.82 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 48,794 shares of company stock valued at $4,866,579 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts recently issued reports on WEC shares. KeyCorp boosted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $108.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays upgraded WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Scotiabank increased their target price on WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on WEC Energy Group in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.40.

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.