WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Sets New 1-Year High – Should You Buy?

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) shares hit a new 52-week high on Thursday. The stock traded as high as $120.15 and last traded at $119.5170, with a volume of 424,134 shares. The stock had previously closed at $118.11.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WEC has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Weiss Ratings raised shares of WEC Energy Group from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $121.00 to $116.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 13th. Truist Financial decreased their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $114.00 to $113.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 16th. BTIG Research reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price target on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Friday, October 30th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on WEC Energy Group from $110.00 to $107.00 in a report on Thursday, October 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $117.88.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.34, a quick ratio of 0.36 and a current ratio of 0.53. The stock has a market cap of $38.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.43. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $106.86 and its 200 day simple moving average is $111.67.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 29th. The utilities provider reported $1.18 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.97 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $2.29 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.27 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 13.49% and a net margin of 17.54%. The company’s revenue was up 8.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.83 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 13th will be paid a dividend of $0.9525 per share. This represents a $3.81 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 13th. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is 69.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling at WEC Energy Group

In related news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 980 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the director owned 19,588 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,068,101.04. The trade was a 4.76% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.46% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEC. John Boyer Inc. acquired a new position in WEC Energy Group in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. lifted its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 972.7% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 236 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Compass Financial Management LLC bought a new position in WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Paladin Partners LLC bought a new position in WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Addison Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.