Eastern Bank Invests $792,000 in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Eastern Bank bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 8,234 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $792,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 36.7% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,566,001 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $201,328,000 after buying an additional 688,812 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 36.0% during the 1st quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,748,141 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $143,557,000 after purchasing an additional 462,646 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $23,297,000. Raymond James & Associates increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 26.0% during the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,283,994 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $123,494,000 after purchasing an additional 264,654 shares in the last quarter. Finally, AMF Tjanstepension AB acquired a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $20,431,000. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 0.7 %

WEC traded down $0.72 during trading on Thursday, reaching $98.81. 2,253,833 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,146,302. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.74. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $94.78 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $86.43. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.13 and a twelve month high of $100.31. The stock has a market cap of $31.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.44.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.04. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.26% and a net margin of 15.85%. The firm had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.87 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.92 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 EPS for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.835 per share. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is 77.14%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Anthony Reese sold 1,362 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.78, for a total transaction of $120,918.36. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $129,796.36. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.04, for a total transaction of $301,449.60. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 3,662 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $340,712.48. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Anthony Reese sold 1,362 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.78, for a total value of $120,918.36. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 1,462 shares in the company, valued at approximately $129,796.36. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 11,702 shares of company stock valued at $1,078,058 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WEC has been the subject of several research analyst reports. KeyCorp upped their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on WEC Energy Group in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a "hold" rating and a $102.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com lowered WEC Energy Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Friday, August 9th. Scotiabank increased their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 20th. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on WEC Energy Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $94.45.

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.