Brentview Investment Management LLC Makes New Investment in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Brentview Investment Management LLC bought a new position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 32,293 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,037,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Marshall Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Marshall Financial Group LLC now owns 2,198 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $207,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 5.2% during the 3rd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 2,248 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $216,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares during the last quarter. Tsfg LLC increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 4.6% during the 4th quarter. Tsfg LLC now owns 2,699 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $254,000 after purchasing an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Drake & Associates LLC increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Drake & Associates LLC now owns 6,216 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $598,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners increased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 777 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $75,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:WEC opened at $99.27 on Monday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $75.13 and a 52-week high of $102.79. The stock has a market cap of $31.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.49. The business’s 50 day moving average is $96.68 and its 200 day moving average is $94.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $1.86 billion for 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%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.00 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.9 EPS for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.835 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.36%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other WEC Energy Group news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 6,720 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.89, for a total transaction of $677,980.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 45,709 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,611,581.01. This trade represents a 12.82 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 1,805 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.40, for a total value of $179,417.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 273,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $27,160,851.20. The trade was a 0.66 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 48,794 shares of company stock worth $4,866,579 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Scotiabank boosted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 9th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $97.00 to $104.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 2nd. Bank of America raised WEC Energy Group from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays raised WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $100.00.

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.