Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. Sells 8,324 Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. lessened its holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,357,527 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 8,324 shares during the period. WEC Energy Group accounts for approximately 1.5% of Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co.’s holdings, making the stock its 19th biggest position. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. owned about 0.43% of WEC Energy Group worth $127,662,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEC. Annex Advisory Services LLC increased its position in WEC Energy Group by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Annex Advisory Services LLC now owns 110,644 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,405,000 after purchasing an additional 6,785 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,538,000. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 51.0% during the 3rd quarter. Motley Fool Wealth Management LLC now owns 29,978 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,883,000 after purchasing an additional 10,126 shares in the last quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lifted its stake in shares of 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 during the period. Finally, PFW Advisors LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group in the 4th quarter worth $1,073,000. 77.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at WEC Energy Group

In other news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 21,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,286,635.67. This represents 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 business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $108.62, for a total value of $2,715,500.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 274,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $29,865,612.10. The trade was a 8.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have recently commented on WEC shares. KeyCorp upped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $108.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Scotiabank lifted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. Barclays upgraded WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $89.00 to $93.00 in a research report on Thursday, January 2nd. Bank of America raised WEC Energy Group from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $90.00 to $98.00 in a report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $101.88.

WEC Energy Group Price Performance

NYSE:WEC opened at $106.27 on Friday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $77.47 and a 52 week high of $110.19. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $103.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $98.81. The company has a market capitalization of $33.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.00, a P/E/G 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 results 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). WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.75% and a return on equity of 12.39%. The company had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.50 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.10 earnings per share. WEC Energy Group’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

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.