Aquatic Capital Management LLC Invests $5.59 Million in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Aquatic Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 59,480 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $5,593,000.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 6,785 shares during the period. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new position in WEC Energy Group in the 4th quarter valued at $1,538,000. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC increased its position in WEC Energy Group by 20.9% during the 4th quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 453,945 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,689,000 after buying an additional 78,580 shares during the period. PFW Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth $1,073,000. Finally, Walkner Condon Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $271,000. 77.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at WEC Energy Group

In other news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 25,000 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.62, for a total transaction of $2,715,500.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 274,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,865,612.10. This trade represents a 8.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.17, for a total value of $119,795.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,286,635.67. This represents a 4.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

WEC Energy Group stock opened at $107.69 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $106.38 and a 200-day moving average of $100.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $34.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.60. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $77.47 and a 52 week high of $111.00.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 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 analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.10 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of $0.8975 per share. This represents a $3.59 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This is a boost from WEC Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is presently 73.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. Barclays upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their target price for the company from $106.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on WEC Energy Group from $112.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $104.38.

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.