Focus Financial Network Inc. Cuts Stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Focus Financial Network Inc. cut its stake in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 10.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,996 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 473 shares during the quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc.’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $329,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC grew its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC now owns 36,086 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,037,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. grew its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.0% during the first quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 6,869 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $564,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Diversified Trust Co grew its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.7% during the first quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 5,099 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $419,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. MPS Loria Financial Planners LLC grew its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 2.1% during the first quarter. MPS Loria Financial Planners LLC now owns 6,704 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $551,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Keystone Financial Group grew its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Keystone Financial Group now owns 3,211 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $270,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares in the last quarter. 77.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of WEC traded up $0.66 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $91.23. 410,048 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,184,249. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $82.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.74. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.13 and a 12 month high of $92.23.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.67 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.26% and a net margin of 15.85%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.92 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, September 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.835 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 14th. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.66%. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is 72.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on WEC shares. Scotiabank lifted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $87.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. KeyCorp decreased their price target on WEC Energy Group from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on WEC Energy Group from $98.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $88.69.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 350 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.75, for a total transaction of $31,412.50. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 2,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $213,335.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other WEC Energy Group news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 750 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $88.45, for a total value of $66,337.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,876 shares in the company, valued at $1,934,932.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 350 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.75, for a total transaction of $31,412.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,377 shares in the company, valued at approximately $213,335.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 2,462 shares of company stock valued at $218,668 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group 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.