WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Hits New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $111.00 and last traded at $109.11, with a volume of 151886 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $108.84.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WEC has been the topic of several research reports. Scotiabank lifted their target price 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. Barclays raised WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $89.00 to $93.00 in a report on Thursday, January 2nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $112.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.88.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 3.8 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.60. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $104.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $99.32. The stock has a market cap of $33.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.44.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.06). The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.50 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.39% and a net margin of 17.75%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.10 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 21,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,286,635.67. This trade represents a 4.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale 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 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 transaction of $2,715,500.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 274,955 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $29,865,612.10. This represents a 8.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 365.4% during the first quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 754 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $82,000 after buying an additional 592 shares during the period. Kera Capital Partners Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $208,000. Marcum Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1.3% during the first quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 7,416 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $808,000 after purchasing an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Centre Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $254,000. Finally, Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. bought a new position in WEC Energy Group in the first quarter worth approximately $226,000. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.