WEC Energy Group, Inc. (WEC) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.95 on December 1st

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.9525 per share by the utilities provider on Tuesday, December 1st. This represents a $3.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th.

WEC Energy Group has increased its dividend payment by an average of 0.1% per year over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 23 years. WEC Energy Group has a dividend payout ratio of 68.0% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect WEC Energy Group to earn $6.02 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.81 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 63.3%.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE:WEC opened at $116.93 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34. WEC Energy Group has a twelve month low of $99.80 and a twelve month high of $120.15. The company has a market cap of $38.47 billion, a PE ratio of 21.22, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.43. The company’s 50 day moving average is $107.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $111.74.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.27 billion. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.54% and a return on equity of 13.49%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.83 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that WEC Energy Group will post 5.61 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WEC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on WEC Energy Group from $124.00 to $122.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 26th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $121.00 to $116.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $117.00 to $128.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, October 30th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $120.00 to $116.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $117.88.

About WEC Energy Group

WEC Energy Group is a regulated energy holding company based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Through its subsidiaries, it generates, transmits and distributes electricity and provides natural gas service to residential, commercial and industrial customers. The company’s utility operations serve communities across Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan and Minnesota. Its businesses include electric and gas utilities, as well as natural gas storage and related energy services. WEC Energy Group adopted its current name in 2015, following the combination of Wisconsin Energy Corporation and Integrys Energy Group.