Ieq Capital LLC Sells 8,231 Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Ieq Capital LLC trimmed its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 77.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,426 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 8,231 shares during the quarter. Ieq Capital LLC's holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $228,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEC. Coastline Trust Co acquired a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the third quarter worth about $29,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Human Investing LLC acquired a new position in WEC Energy Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the fourth quarter worth $59,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth about $61,000. 77.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at WEC Energy Group

In other news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.17, for a total transaction of $119,795.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 21,951 shares in the company, valued at $2,286,635.67. The trade was a 4.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have issued reports on WEC shares. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $108.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 4th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. StockNews.com downgraded WEC Energy Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Bank of America raised WEC Energy Group from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $112.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $101.88.

WEC Energy Group Trading Down 1.5 %

WEC stock traded down $1.58 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $106.78. 1,720,064 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,192,477. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $77.47 and a 52-week high of $108.87. The stock's fifty day moving average is $99.21 and its 200-day moving average is $97.17. The company has a market cap of $33.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.11, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.06). WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.75% and a return on equity of 12.39%. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.10 earnings per share. WEC Energy Group's revenue was up 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.835 per share. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.13%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is 73.91%.

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.