Avalon Trust Co Cuts Position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Avalon Trust Co lowered its position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 13.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 666 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 100 shares during the quarter. Avalon Trust Co’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $73,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of WEC. Marcum Wealth LLC lifted its position in WEC Energy Group by 1.3% during the first quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 7,416 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $808,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 14.3% during the 1st quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 744 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $81,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Clean Yield Group boosted its position in WEC Energy Group by 12.6% during the 1st quarter. Clean Yield Group now owns 867 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. MJP Associates Inc. ADV increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 3,019 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $284,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC raised its position in WEC Energy Group by 3.0% in the first quarter. Premier Path Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,335 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $363,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Trading Up 1.1%

WEC opened at $110.29 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.20 billion, a PE ratio of 21.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.40. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $86.76 and a 12-month high of $111.07. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $105.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $105.40.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.05. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.87% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The business had revenue of $2.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.67 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be issued a $0.8925 dividend. This represents a $3.57 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 14th. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 68.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other WEC Energy Group news, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 2,155 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.77, for a total transaction of $232,244.35. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 2,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $289,470.22. This represents a 44.52% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $99.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $106.00 to $100.00 in a research report on Wednesday, June 25th. Finally, UBS Group set a $107.00 price target on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, July 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WEC Energy Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $106.40.

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.