Townsquare Capital LLC Grows Stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Free Report) by 7.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 116,317 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,731 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC's holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $11,187,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of WEC. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 5.2% in the third quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 2,248 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $216,000 after purchasing an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT raised its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.0% during the 2nd quarter. Bradley Foster & Sargent Inc. CT now owns 6,047 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $474,000 after acquiring an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Global X Japan Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 58.1% during 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. Drake & Associates LLC lifted its position in WEC Energy Group by 2.0% during the third quarter. Drake & Associates LLC now owns 6,216 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $598,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Park National Corp OH boosted its stake in WEC Energy Group by 3.4% in the third quarter. Park National Corp OH now owns 3,964 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $381,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WEC traded up $0.27 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $101.82. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,308,030 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,219,716. 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 fifty day moving average of $97.21 and a 200 day moving average of $89.31. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $75.13 and a twelve month high of $102.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.21 billion, a PE ratio of 24.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.44.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.12. The company 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.00 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business 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 $0.835 dividend. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 14th. WEC Energy Group's payout ratio is presently 81.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

WEC has been the subject of several analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America raised their price target on WEC Energy Group from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Thursday, August 29th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. KeyCorp lifted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $94.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 40,269 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.56, for a total value of $4,009,181.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 273,248 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,204,570.88. This represents a 12.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.04, for a total value of $301,449.60. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 3,662 shares in the company, valued at $340,712.48. This trade represents a 46.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 52,034 shares of company stock worth $5,168,029. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company's stock.

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.