Tower Research Capital LLC TRC Sells 6,127 Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Tower Research Capital LLC TRC lowered its position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 23.7% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 19,678 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 6,127 shares during the quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC's holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $1,851,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. World Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in WEC Energy Group by 15.6% in the 3rd quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 21,075 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,027,000 after purchasing an additional 2,845 shares during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB boosted its stake in WEC Energy Group by 238.4% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 12,421 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,195,000 after acquiring an additional 8,751 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC grew its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.9% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 4,428 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $426,000 after acquiring an additional 166 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp increased its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 4.7% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 2,980 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $287,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp lifted its stake in WEC Energy Group by 56.6% in the third quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 6,523 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $627,000 after purchasing an additional 2,358 shares during the last quarter. 77.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of WEC opened at $109.19 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $106.06 and a 200-day moving average price of $100.38. The company has a market cap of $34.84 billion, a PE ratio of 22.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.44. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $77.47 and a 12-month high of $111.00.

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

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be issued a $0.8975 dividend. This is a boost from WEC Energy Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. This represents a $3.59 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 73.91%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 25,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.62, for a total value of $2,715,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 274,955 shares in the company, valued at approximately $29,865,612.10. The trade was a 8.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction 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 owns 21,951 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,286,635.67. The trade was a 4.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on WEC shares. StockNews.com upgraded WEC Energy Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded WEC Energy Group from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $106.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $112.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays upgraded WEC Energy Group from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and upped their price target for the company from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $104.38.

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.

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