Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Sells 87,815 Shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. $WEC

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lessened its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 44.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 109,435 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 87,815 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $12,540,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEC. Gradient Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of WEC Energy Group by 1.7% during the third quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 6,243 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $715,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the last quarter. AssuredPartners Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group in the third quarter worth $294,000. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in WEC Energy Group by 125.5% during the third quarter. Inspirion Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,870 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $558,000 after acquiring an additional 2,710 shares during the period. Greenfield Savings Bank raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Greenfield Savings Bank now owns 3,954 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $453,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nilsine Partners LLC boosted its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter. Nilsine Partners LLC now owns 3,534 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $405,000 after purchasing an additional 110 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Mizuho set a $125.00 price target on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Monday, October 27th. Citigroup began coverage on WEC Energy Group in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $131.00 price target on the stock. BTIG Research raised WEC Energy Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on WEC Energy Group in a research report on Monday, October 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $124.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating, six have assigned a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WEC Energy Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $120.92.

WEC Energy Group Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of WEC opened at $103.95 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $110.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $109.06. The stock has a market cap of $33.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.56. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $91.94 and a 12 month high of $118.18.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, September 2nd. The utilities provider reported $1.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.60% and a net margin of 17.75%. Equities analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 EPS for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.9525 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. This is a boost from WEC Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. This represents a $3.81 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.49%.

About WEC Energy Group

WEC Energy Group is a Milwaukee, Wisconsin–based regulated energy holding company whose primary businesses are the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity and the distribution of natural gas. The company operates through a set of utility subsidiaries that provide bundled energy service, customer billing and energy-related programs to residential, commercial and industrial customers. As a regulated utility group, WEC’s operations focus on delivering reliable service while managing infrastructure investment and compliance with state and federal utility regulation.

Its utility subsidiaries include well-known regional operators such as We Energies and Wisconsin Public Service, along with Chicago-area natural gas utilities that were part of the Integrys Energy Group acquisition.