WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Hits New 52-Week High – Should You Buy?

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $107.17 and last traded at $107.49, with a volume of 84151 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $106.69.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WEC has been the subject of several research reports. KeyCorp lifted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $108.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. 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. Bank of America upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Scotiabank increased their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, Barclays upgraded WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.88.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 0.9 %

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $99.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.28. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.03 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.65, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.10 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Saturday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were paid a $0.835 dividend. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is 73.91%.

Insider Transactions at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.17, for a total transaction of $119,795.50. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 21,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,286,635.67. The trade was a 4.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 25,000 shares of the company’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 transaction of $2,715,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 274,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,865,612.10. This trade represents a 8.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.44% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WEC Energy Group

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3,828.6% in the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 275 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the period. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Coastline Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Hoey Investments Inc. acquired a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the third quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

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.