WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Stake Raised by Ameritas Advisory Services LLC

Ameritas Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 1.6% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 25,110 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 405 shares during the period. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $1,970,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $196,000. HB Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 42.7% in the 2nd quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,054 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $318,000 after purchasing an additional 1,214 shares in the last quarter. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. lifted its stake in WEC Energy Group by 16.6% during the second quarter. 1834 Investment Advisors Co. now owns 82,456 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,469,000 after buying an additional 11,767 shares in the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1.4% in the second quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 27,578 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,164,000 after acquiring an additional 377 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1.6% during the second quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 97,400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $7,642,000 after acquiring an additional 1,551 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of WEC stock traded up $0.31 on Friday, reaching $93.08. The company had a trading volume of 334,462 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,170,258. The company has a 50-day moving average of $84.30 and a 200-day moving average of $81.99. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.13 and a 12 month high of $93.78. The stock has a market cap of $29.42 billion, a PE ratio of 20.28, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.87 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.92 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, August 14th will be given a dividend of $0.835 per share. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 14th. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.93%.

Insider Activity

In related news, 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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at $129,796.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, VP Anthony Reese sold 1,362 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.78, for a total value of $120,918.36. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 1,462 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $129,796.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 350 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.75, for a total transaction of $31,412.50. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,377 shares in the company, valued at $213,335.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 8,462 shares of company stock worth $776,608 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on WEC. Barclays lifted their target price on WEC Energy Group from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on WEC Energy Group from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Scotiabank upped their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on WEC Energy Group from $98.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 21st. Finally, Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $89.77.

WEC Energy Group 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.