Hills Bank & Trust Co Makes New $121,000 Investment in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Hills Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 1,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $121,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 36.7% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,566,001 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $201,328,000 after acquiring an additional 688,812 shares during the last quarter. Earnest Partners LLC boosted its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 36.0% in the first quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,748,141 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $143,557,000 after purchasing an additional 462,646 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 151.7% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 583,990 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $56,168,000 after purchasing an additional 351,972 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 10,220.1% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 303,515 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,192,000 after buying an additional 300,574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 1st quarter valued at $23,297,000. 77.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of WEC opened at $95.57 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $95.55 and its 200 day moving average is $87.18. The company has a current ratio of 0.65, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $75.13 and a 12-month high of $100.31. The company has a market capitalization of $30.21 billion, a PE ratio of 23.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.44.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.70 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $1.86 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 15.14% and a return on equity of 11.72%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 4.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.00 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Investors of record on Thursday, November 14th will be given a $0.835 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. This represents a $3.34 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.49%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 81.66%.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, 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 value 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 trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.04, for a total transaction of $301,449.60. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 3,662 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $340,712.48. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 350 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 2,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $213,335.75. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 11,702 shares of company stock valued at $1,078,058. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

WEC has been the subject of a number of research reports. KeyCorp upped their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a report on Thursday, September 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $102.00 price objective on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $91.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 23rd. Finally, Bank of America upped their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $94.45.

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.