Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Decreases Position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. cut its position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 20.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 17,052 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 4,490 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $1,603,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Czech National Bank grew its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 7.0% in the third quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 64,388 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $6,193,000 after acquiring an additional 4,205 shares during the period. Annex Advisory Services LLC grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 110,644 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,405,000 after buying an additional 6,785 shares during the period. DRW Securities LLC bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $1,392,000. Matrix Trust Co bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,538,000. Finally, Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 51.0% during the third quarter. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,978 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,883,000 after buying an additional 10,126 shares during the period. 77.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

WEC stock opened at $97.39 on Friday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a one year low of $75.13 and a one year high of $102.79. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $96.71 and its 200-day moving average price is $93.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a current ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $30.81 billion, a PE ratio of 23.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.48.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.12. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 15.14% and a return on equity of 11.72%. The firm had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.00 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.835 per share. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is 81.66%.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 40,269 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.56, for a total transaction of $4,009,181.64. Following the transaction, the director now owns 273,248 shares in the company, valued at $27,204,570.88. The trade was a 12.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 6,720 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 in the company, valued at $4,611,581.01. This trade represents a 12.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 48,794 shares of company stock valued at $4,866,579 over the last 90 days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently issued reports on WEC shares. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $108.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. Barclays upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $98.40.

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.