FY2024 EPS Estimates for WEC Energy Group Lifted by KeyCorp

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) – Equities research analysts at KeyCorp lifted their FY2024 EPS estimates for shares of WEC Energy Group in a report issued on Tuesday, December 3rd. KeyCorp analyst S. Karp now forecasts that the utilities provider will post earnings per share of $4.92 for the year, up from their prior forecast of $4.87. KeyCorp currently has a “Overweight” rating and a $109.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for WEC Energy Group’s current full-year earnings is $4.87 per share. KeyCorp also issued estimates for WEC Energy Group’s Q4 2024 earnings at $1.47 EPS, FY2026 earnings at $5.58 EPS, FY2027 earnings at $6.00 EPS and FY2028 earnings at $6.40 EPS.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released 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. The business had revenue of $1.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.93 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 15.14%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.00 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on WEC. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research note on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “hold” rating and a $102.00 target price on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. StockNews.com raised WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $97.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $95.55.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WEC opened at $97.71 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $97.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $89.80. WEC Energy Group has a 12-month low of $75.13 and a 12-month high of $102.79. 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 firm has a market cap of $30.91 billion, a PE ratio of 23.89, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.46.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WEC Energy Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 106,685.0% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 26,000,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,500,680,000 after purchasing an additional 25,975,652 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 17,270.5% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 4,718,179 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $453,794,000 after buying an additional 4,691,017 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 102.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,776,071 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $362,971,000 after acquiring an additional 1,912,223 shares in the last quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its position in WEC Energy Group by 57.7% during the third quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 1,900,238 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $182,765,000 after purchasing an additional 695,317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 36.7% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,566,001 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $201,328,000 after acquiring an additional 688,812 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 6,720 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 45,709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,611,581.01. This trade represents a 12.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 40,269 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.56, for a total value of $4,009,181.64. Following the sale, the director now owns 273,248 shares in the company, valued at $27,204,570.88. This trade represents a 12.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 48,794 shares of company stock valued at $4,866,579. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, December 5th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were paid a dividend of $0.8925 per share. This represents a $3.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.65%. This is a positive change from WEC Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is 81.66%.

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.