Redmond Asset Management LLC Invests $442,000 in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Redmond Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 4,700 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $442,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Annex Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $10,405,000 after buying an additional 6,785 shares in the last quarter. DRW Securities LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the third quarter worth about $1,392,000. Matrix Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth about $1,538,000. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 worth $2,883,000 after buying an additional 10,126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC grew its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 20.9% in the fourth quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 453,945 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,689,000 after purchasing an additional 78,580 shares during the period. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

WEC opened at $104.04 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $76.50 and a 52-week high of $104.98. The company has a 50 day moving average of $97.76 and a two-hundred day moving average of $96.39. The company has a market cap of $32.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.49.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.06). WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 17.75%. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. WEC Energy Group’s quarterly revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 earnings per share 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. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.835 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.21%. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 73.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on WEC. 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 report on Wednesday, December 4th. Bank of America upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $90.00 to $98.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $112.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.88.

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.