WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Cut to “Sell” at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report report published on Monday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. KeyCorp reduced their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $126.00 to $117.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $120.00 to $117.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $110.50 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $122.00 to $114.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded WEC Energy Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $121.91.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of WEC stock opened at $103.39 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.04, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.47. WEC Energy Group has a one year low of $102.86 and a one year high of $119.91. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $109.32 and its 200-day simple moving average is $112.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35, a quick ratio of 0.39 and a current ratio of 0.53.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $2.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.11 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.90% and a net margin of 16.69%.WEC Energy Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.76 earnings per share. WEC Energy Group has set its FY 2026 guidance at 5.510-5.610 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that WEC Energy Group will post 5.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 1st. Investors of record on Friday, August 14th were given a $0.9525 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 14th. This represents a $3.81 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 73.84%.

Insider Transactions at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 980 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $105.58, for a total value of $103,468.40. Following the sale, the director owned 19,588 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,068,101.04. This trade represents a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.46% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On WEC Energy Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in WEC. Legal & General Group Plc acquired a new position in WEC Energy Group in the second quarter worth approximately $299,100,000. Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 175.0% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 3,357,608 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $354,093,000 after acquiring an additional 2,136,542 shares during the last quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $144,582,000. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec acquired a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $128,290,000. Finally, Energy Income Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter worth $97,564,000. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WEC Energy Group Company Profile

WEC Energy Group is a diversified energy holding company headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Through its utility subsidiaries, the company generates and distributes electricity and delivers natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers.

WEC Energy Group serves customers primarily in Wisconsin, Illinois, Michigan, and Minnesota. Its operating companies include We Energies, Wisconsin Public Service, Upper Michigan Energy Resources, Minnesota Energy Resources, Michigan Gas Utilities, North Shore Gas, and Peoples Gas.