WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Price Target Cut to $90.00 by Analysts at Scotiabank

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) had its price objective reduced by Scotiabank from $96.00 to $90.00 in a research note published on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have a sector outperform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

WEC has been the subject of a number of other reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on WEC Energy Group in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued a neutral rating and a $88.00 price target for the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded WEC Energy Group from a neutral rating to an underweight rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on WEC Energy Group from $93.00 to $91.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. StockNews.com lowered WEC Energy Group from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Saturday, January 13th. Finally, Bank of America restated an underperform rating and issued a $78.00 target price (down previously from $84.00) on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Four 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, the company presently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of $86.64.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WEC opened at $82.63 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $26.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.58, a PEG ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.55. WEC Energy Group has a one year low of $75.13 and a one year high of $98.80. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $80.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $81.42.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.10 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.02. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.17% and a net margin of 14.98%. The company had revenue of $2.22 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.82 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.80 EPS. WEC Energy Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 13.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group will post 4.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.835 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 13th. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.04%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 79.15%.

Insider Buying and Selling at WEC Energy Group

In related news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total value of $223,258.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 43,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,402,131.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other WEC Energy Group news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total transaction of $223,258.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 43,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,402,131.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.69, for a total transaction of $2,925,694.20. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 274,782 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,622,595.58. 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 and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Northwest Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, First United Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Hedge funds and other 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.