WEC Energy Group, Inc. $WEC Shares Acquired by Baillie Gifford & Co.

Baillie Gifford & Co. increased its holdings in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 53.0% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 131,363 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 45,477 shares during the quarter. Baillie Gifford & Co.’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $15,053,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in WEC Energy Group by 16.9% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 16,698 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,820,000 after purchasing an additional 2,417 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP increased its position in WEC Energy Group by 41.3% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 26,839 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,925,000 after acquiring an additional 7,841 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its position in WEC Energy Group by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 5,901 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $615,000 after acquiring an additional 199 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio raised its stake in WEC Energy Group by 9.4% during the 2nd quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio now owns 106,551 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $11,103,000 after acquiring an additional 9,148 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. lifted its position in WEC Energy Group by 32.5% during the 2nd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 2,203 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $230,000 after acquiring an additional 540 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 77.20% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Bank of America dropped their target price on WEC Energy Group from $122.00 to $116.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 31st. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. KeyCorp restated an “overweight” rating on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Scotiabank upped their price objective on WEC Energy Group from $129.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $114.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, WEC Energy Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $120.36.

Key Headlines Impacting WEC Energy Group

Here are the key news stories impacting WEC Energy Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Board raised the quarterly common dividend by 6.7% to $0.9525 per share (annualized $3.81), reinforcing WEC’s income profile and supporting yield-focused investor demand. WEC Energy Group raises quarterly dividend by 6.7 percent
• Positive Sentiment: Major business-media outlets highlighted the dividend increase, increasing visibility to income investors and potentially underpinning the share price. WEC Energy Group Raises Dividend 6.7%
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary and models that emphasize EPS growth point to WEC as an opportunity for investors focused on steady earnings growth and dividend coverage; this supports a longer-term constructive view. If EPS Growth Is Important To You, WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Presents An Opportunity
• Neutral Sentiment: Barclays nudged its price target up from $105 to $110 but kept an “equal weight” rating — a modest positive signal but not a strong upgrade of sentiment. Benzinga note on Barclays price target
• Neutral Sentiment: WEC declared quarterly preferred-stock dividends (routine payment schedule for preferred series); material mainly to preferred holders and not a major surprise for common shareholders. Wisconsin Electric declares quarterly dividends
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts offered sector-level insights on utilities including WEC (TipRanks/Globe and Mail), providing context but no material new guidance; useful for investors benchmarking WEC vs. peers. Analysts Offer Insights on Utilities Companies: American Water (AWK) and WEC Energy Group (WEC)
• Neutral Sentiment: Longtime WEC leader Gale Klappa will retire from the board and be named Chairman Emeritus; the company has a planned succession with Lauber to be appointed chairman. This is a controlled, announced transition but may prompt investor scrutiny of governance and strategy under new board leadership. Klappa to retire, named Chairman Emeritus
• Neutral Sentiment: Local and national coverage noted Klappa’s retirement after 22+ years on the board; given the planned, orderly succession the move is not unexpected but remains a watch item for governance/strategy continuity. WEC Energy Group chairman Gale Klappa to retire from board after more than 22 years
• Neutral Sentiment: National coverage summarized the board/leadership news for broader investor audiences. Longtime head of We Energies’ corporate parent is retiring

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

NYSE WEC opened at $109.15 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. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $96.37 and a fifty-two week high of $118.18. The business has a fifty day moving average of $107.15 and a 200-day moving average of $109.41. The stock has a market cap of $35.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.58.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.81 by $0.02. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.60% and a net margin of 17.75%.The firm had revenue of $2.10 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.86 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.82 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.9% compared to the same quarter last year. WEC Energy Group has set its FY 2025 guidance at 5.170-5.270 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, March 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 13th will be given a $0.9525 dividend. 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 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 13th. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.49%.

WEC Energy Group Profile

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.