Mizuho Securities USA LLC Increases Position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC boosted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 106,685.0% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,000,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 25,975,652 shares during the quarter. WEC Energy Group accounts for 6.5% of Mizuho Securities USA LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 5th biggest holding. Mizuho Securities USA LLC owned 8.22% of WEC Energy Group worth $2,500,680,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 58.1% in the 2nd quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. now owns 321 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Olistico Wealth LLC bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, ESL Trust Services LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently issued reports on WEC shares. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on WEC Energy Group in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a "hold" rating and a $102.00 target price for the company. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, WEC Energy Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $94.45.

WEC Energy Group Trading Up 1.9 %

NYSE WEC traded up $1.85 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $97.98. 2,087,394 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,187,937. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $75.13 and a 52 week high of $100.31. The company has a quick ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $96.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $88.26. The stock has a market cap of $31.00 billion, a PE ratio of 23.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.44.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 11.72% and a net margin of 15.14%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. Analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a $0.835 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.41%. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 81.66%.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

In related news, VP William J. Guc sold 6,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.99, for a total transaction of $557,940.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,702 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $716,208.98. This trade represents a 43.79 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.04, for a total value of $301,449.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 3,662 shares in the company, valued at $340,712.48. This trade represents a 46.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

About WEC Energy Group

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.