WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Hits New 12-Month High - What's Next?

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC - Get Free Report) shares hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $104.16 and last traded at $103.01, with a volume of 1728160 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $102.97.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have weighed in on WEC. Barclays upgraded WEC Energy Group from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $89.00 to $93.00 in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. Bank of America upgraded WEC Energy Group from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $98.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company upped 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. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Scotiabank upped 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $101.88.

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WEC Energy Group Trading Up 0.5 %

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 business's 50-day simple moving average is $97.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $96.39. The company has a market capitalization of $32.91 billion, a PE ratio of 21.54, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.49.

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

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.835 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.21%. WEC Energy Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 73.91%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WEC Energy Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Annex Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 110,644 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $10,405,000 after acquiring an additional 6,785 shares during the period. DRW Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group in the third quarter valued at approximately $1,392,000. Matrix Trust Co bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,538,000. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 51.0% in the third quarter. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,978 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,883,000 after acquiring an additional 10,126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gateway Investment Advisers LLC boosted its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 20.9% during the fourth quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 453,945 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,689,000 after buying an additional 78,580 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.20% 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.