WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) Plans $0.84 Quarterly Dividend

WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 18th, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be paid a dividend of 0.835 per share by the utilities provider on Saturday, June 1st. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.15%.

WEC Energy Group has increased its dividend by an average of 7.2% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend annually for the last 22 consecutive years. WEC Energy Group has a dividend payout ratio of 63.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect WEC Energy Group to earn $5.22 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.34 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 64.0%.

WEC Energy Group Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE WEC traded up $0.81 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $80.44. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,079,331 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,147,919. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $79.64 and a 200 day moving average of $81.32. WEC Energy Group has a twelve month low of $75.13 and a twelve month high of $98.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.87, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other WEC Energy Group news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total value of $223,258.70. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 43,125 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,402,131.25. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.69, for a total transaction of $2,925,694.20. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 274,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $21,622,595.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 43,125 shares in the company, valued at $3,402,131.25. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On WEC Energy Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quilter Plc bought a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 1st quarter worth approximately $234,348,000. Achmea Investment Management B.V. bought a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group in the 1st quarter valued at $27,000. First Manhattan Co. boosted its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 102.0% in the 4th quarter. First Manhattan Co. now owns 303 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. acquired a new position in shares of WEC Energy Group during the 1st quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Quarry LP lifted its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 373.3% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 549 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 433 shares during the period. 77.20% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

WEC has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $93.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and set a $78.00 price objective (down from $84.00) on shares of WEC Energy Group in a report on Thursday, January 4th. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $94.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 4th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $79.00 to $75.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $86.31.

WEC Energy Group Company 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.