Cetera Investment Advisers Sells 3,311 Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Cetera Investment Advisers lowered its position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 2.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 147,466 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 3,311 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $13,868,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 134.2% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 11,047,753 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,038,931,000 after purchasing an additional 6,329,574 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,063,653 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $756,423,000 after buying an additional 110,802 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in WEC Energy Group by 17.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,806,360 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $462,276,000 after acquiring an additional 699,177 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 7.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 4,212,188 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $396,114,000 after acquiring an additional 309,697 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,863,782 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $363,350,000 after acquiring an additional 87,711 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of WEC stock opened at $107.65 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $34.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.29, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.46. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $107.08 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $101.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $77.47 and a 52 week high of $111.00.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.27 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.09. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 17.75%. The company had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.97 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a $0.8975 dividend. This represents a $3.59 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This is a boost from WEC Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 69.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on WEC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $106.00 to $108.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Scotiabank set a $115.00 price target on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.13.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.62, for a total transaction of $2,715,500.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 274,955 shares in the company, valued at $29,865,612.10. This represents a 8.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.17, for a total value of $119,795.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 21,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,286,635.67. This trade represents a 4.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.50% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.