KBC Group NV Grows Stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. $WEC

KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 25.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 32,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,652 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $3,437,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of WEC. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 1st quarter valued at about $403,372,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 34.9% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,213,304 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $567,727,000 after buying an additional 1,349,522 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 16.6% during the first quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,103,604 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $556,191,000 after buying an additional 726,267 shares during the last quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1,529.3% during the 1st quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 709,209 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $77,290,000 after acquiring an additional 665,681 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bahl & Gaynor Inc. boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 40.0% during the 1st quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc. now owns 1,319,511 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $143,800,000 after acquiring an additional 376,960 shares during the last quarter. 77.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WEC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. BTIG Research raised WEC Energy Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. UBS Group upped their price target on WEC Energy Group from $117.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. TD Cowen began coverage on WEC Energy Group in a research report on Thursday, October 16th. They set a “hold” rating and a $125.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada set a $131.00 target price on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research note on Monday, October 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, eight have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WEC Energy Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $120.21.

WEC Energy Group Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of WEC opened at $110.80 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $36.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.95, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a current ratio of 0.50 and a quick ratio of 0.33. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $91.94 and a 1 year high of $118.18. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $112.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $108.92.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.75% and a return on equity of 12.60%. On average, equities 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 business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 1st. Investors of record on Friday, November 14th will be given a $0.8925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 14th. This represents a $3.57 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 67.49%.

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.