Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. Reduces Holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 53.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 9,412 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 10,982 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $1,026,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 5,722,158 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $538,112,000 after acquiring an additional 173,006 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 15.4% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 3,935,857 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $370,128,000 after purchasing an additional 526,014 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 3,815,407 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $358,801,000 after purchasing an additional 141,393 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 20.6% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,519,401 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $274,564,000 after purchasing an additional 430,269 shares during the period. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,015,758 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $189,562,000 after purchasing an additional 30,989 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

WEC Energy Group Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE WEC opened at $109.73 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.02, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.42. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 52-week low of $87.71 and a 52-week high of $111.90. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $106.38 and a 200 day moving average price of $105.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.71 by $0.05. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.87% and a return on equity of 12.90%. The firm had revenue of $2.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.87 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.67 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

WEC Energy Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 14th will be given a $0.8925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 14th. This represents a $3.57 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.3%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 68.39%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered WEC Energy Group from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $106.00 to $100.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 25th. Wall Street Zen lowered WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 12th. Scotiabank set a $115.00 price objective on WEC Energy Group and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. UBS Group set a $107.00 price objective on WEC Energy Group and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $106.40.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Anthony Reese sold 4,177 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $110.30, for a total transaction of $460,723.10. Following the sale, the vice president owned 1,757 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $193,797.10. This trade represents a 70.39% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 5,960 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $110.98, for a total value of $661,440.80. Following the sale, the director directly owned 274,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $30,516,059.62. The trade was a 2.12% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 61,372 shares of company stock valued at $6,789,843. Corporate insiders own 0.50% of the company’s stock.

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.