Magellan Asset Management Ltd Lowers Holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Magellan Asset Management Ltd lowered its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 28.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,663,354 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 648,423 shares during the quarter. WEC Energy Group makes up 1.7% of Magellan Asset Management Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Magellan Asset Management Ltd owned approximately 0.53% of WEC Energy Group worth $156,422,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 3,828.6% during the 4th quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 275 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 268 shares in the last quarter. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Hoey Investments Inc. bought a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the fourth quarter worth $42,000. Human Investing LLC bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the 4th quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. lifted its stake in WEC Energy Group by 140.8% in the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 590 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $55,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 25,000 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.62, for a total value of $2,715,500.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 274,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,865,612.10. The trade was a 8.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of the 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:WEC opened at $108.96 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $104.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $99.20. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.60. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a one year low of $77.47 and a one year high of $110.19. The firm has a market cap of $34.41 billion, a PE ratio of 22.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.45.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 EPS 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 business had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.50 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.10 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on WEC. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on WEC Energy Group from $112.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Monday, December 9th. KeyCorp raised their target price 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. StockNews.com cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted 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 investment 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’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.88.

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.