CENTRAL TRUST Co Sells 242 Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

CENTRAL TRUST Co cut its position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 3.9% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 5,994 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 242 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $564,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Coastline Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the third quarter worth about $45,000. Friedenthal Financial bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $63,000. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 20.7% during the third 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 owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE:WEC opened at $100.62 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $31.83 billion, a PE ratio of 24.60, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $96.68 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $94.64. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.13 and a 12 month high of $102.79.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.835 per share. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 87.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on WEC. Bank of America upgraded WEC Energy Group from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $90.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. KeyCorp increased their price objective 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. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $97.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target 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. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 40,269 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.56, for a total value of $4,009,181.64. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 273,248 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,204,570.88. This trade represents a 12.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 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 sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 45,709 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,611,581.01. The trade was a 12.82 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 48,794 shares of company stock valued at $4,866,579. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About WEC Energy Group

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.