Mizuho Securities USA LLC Has $2.50 Billion Stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC raised its stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 106,685.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 26,000,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 25,975,652 shares during the quarter. WEC Energy Group makes up about 6.5% of Mizuho Securities USA LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Mizuho Securities USA LLC owned about 8.22% of WEC Energy Group worth $2,500,680,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in WEC Energy Group by 36.7% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,566,001 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $201,328,000 after purchasing an additional 688,812 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC grew its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 11.8% during the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,954,778 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $153,372,000 after acquiring an additional 206,637 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,782,939 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $139,889,000 after purchasing an additional 61,019 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1.7% in the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 1,355,909 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $106,385,000 after buying an additional 22,026 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Westwood Holdings Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 9.2% during the first quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. now owns 1,320,723 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $108,458,000 after purchasing an additional 111,254 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:WEC opened at $97.98 on Friday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a one year low of $75.13 and a one year high of $100.31. The stock has a market cap of $31.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The company has a 50 day moving average of $96.24 and a 200-day moving average of $88.26.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released its quarterly earnings data 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.93 billion. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 15.14% and a return on equity of 11.72%. WEC Energy Group’s quarterly revenue was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.00 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a $0.835 dividend. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 81.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling at WEC Energy Group

In other news, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.04, for a total transaction of $301,449.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,662 shares in the company, valued at $340,712.48. This represents a 46.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP William J. Guc sold 6,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.99, for a total value of $557,940.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,702 shares in the company, valued at approximately $716,208.98. This represents a 43.79 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WEC has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Scotiabank increased their target price on WEC Energy Group from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 20th. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on WEC Energy Group in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price target for the company. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $94.45.

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.