Principal Financial Group Inc. Lowers Position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its position in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 9.4% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,632,674 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 168,448 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $157,031,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in WEC Energy Group by 36.7% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,566,001 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $201,328,000 after buying an additional 688,812 shares during the period. Earnest Partners LLC grew its position in shares of WEC Energy Group by 36.0% during the 1st quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 1,748,141 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $143,557,000 after acquiring an additional 462,646 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in shares of 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 valued at $56,168,000 after purchasing an additional 351,972 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 10,220.1% in 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 purchasing an additional 300,574 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in WEC Energy Group in the 1st quarter worth about $23,297,000. 77.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

WEC Energy Group Trading Down 0.7 %

NYSE WEC opened at $95.33 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37, a current ratio of 0.65 and a quick ratio of 0.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.31, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.44. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $95.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $87.56. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $75.13 and a 12 month high of $100.31.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The utilities provider reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.70 by $0.12. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 15.14% and a return on equity of 11.72%. The firm had revenue of $1.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.93 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 4.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, December 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 14th will be paid a $0.835 dividend. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 14th. WEC Energy Group’s payout ratio is currently 81.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have commented on WEC shares. KeyCorp raised their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. StockNews.com raised shares of WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $90.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of WEC Energy Group from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “underperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $86.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $94.45.

Insider Activity at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $340,712.48. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, VP Mary Beth Straka sold 3,240 shares of the business’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 completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 3,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $340,712.48. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP William J. Guc sold 6,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.99, for a total value of $557,940.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,702 shares in the company, valued at $716,208.98. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.