Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Acquires 224,410 Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 2,949.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 232,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 224,410 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $18,204,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of WEC. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 36,086 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,037,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.0% during the first quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 6,869 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $564,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.7% during the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 5,099 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $419,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. MPS Loria Financial Planners LLC grew its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.1% during the first quarter. MPS Loria Financial Planners LLC now owns 6,704 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $551,000 after buying an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Keystone Financial Group grew its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Keystone Financial Group now owns 3,211 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 138 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other WEC Energy Group news, VP Anthony Reese sold 1,362 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.78, for a total transaction of $120,918.36. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $129,796.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 750 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.45, for a total transaction of $66,337.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 21,876 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,934,932.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Anthony Reese sold 1,362 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.78, for a total transaction of $120,918.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at $129,796.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 2,462 shares of company stock valued at $218,668. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on WEC shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $87.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Scotiabank dropped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $96.00 to $90.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 22nd. KeyCorp decreased their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $87.31.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

NYSE WEC traded up $0.23 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $89.52. 2,288,483 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,199,591. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.13 and a 52-week high of $92.23. The company has a market capitalization of $28.30 billion, a PE ratio of 19.55, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.74 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $82.18 and its 200-day moving average is $81.26.

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, beating the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.04. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 15.85% and a return on equity of 12.26%. The company had revenue of $1.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. WEC Energy Group’s revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.88 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 14th will be given a dividend of $0.835 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 14th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.73%. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 72.93%.

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.