Stanley Laman Group Ltd. Increases Stock Holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. $WEC

Stanley Laman Group Ltd. raised its position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 15.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,735 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 373 shares during the quarter. Stanley Laman Group Ltd.’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $285,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Horizon Investment Services LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group during the first quarter worth about $379,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2,964.9% in the 1st quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 108,651 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $11,841,000 after buying an additional 105,106 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $10,333,000. Sowell Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in WEC Energy Group during the first quarter worth $325,000. Finally, CWA Asset Management Group LLC raised its position in WEC Energy Group by 5.6% in the first quarter. CWA Asset Management Group LLC now owns 2,947 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $321,000 after acquiring an additional 157 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 35,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.73, for a total transaction of $3,875,550.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 274,969 shares in the company, valued at $30,447,317.37. This represents a 11.29% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Daniel Krueger sold 5,930 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.14, for a total transaction of $659,060.20. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 6,606 shares in the company, valued at approximately $734,190.84. This represents a 47.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 68,448 shares of company stock valued at $7,581,132 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of WEC Energy Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Citigroup started coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $131.00 target price for the company. KeyCorp boosted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $110.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Cowen started coverage on WEC Energy Group in a report on Wednesday. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Scotiabank upped their target price on WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $129.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 6th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $114.64.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

WEC stock opened at $116.84 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $110.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $107.96. The firm has a market cap of $37.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.38, a PEG ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.55. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.94 and a 1 year high of $118.10.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, September 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 17.87%. 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 Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th will be paid a $0.8925 dividend. This represents a $3.57 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 68.39%.

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.