Second Line Capital LLC Increases Position in WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC)

Second Line Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of WEC Energy Group, Inc. (NYSE:WEC) by 54.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 3,396 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,203 shares during the quarter. Second Line Capital LLC’s holdings in WEC Energy Group were worth $319,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in WEC. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 3,828.6% in the fourth quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 275 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Hoey Investments Inc. purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group in the fourth quarter valued at $52,000. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its holdings in WEC Energy Group by 140.8% in the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 590 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after purchasing an additional 345 shares during the last quarter. 77.20% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on WEC shares. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Scotiabank set a $115.00 price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $106.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $99.00 to $101.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of WEC Energy Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $107.13.

WEC Energy Group Stock Up 1.5%

WEC opened at $106.50 on Friday. WEC Energy Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $77.47 and a twelve month high of $111.00. The company has a quick ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.37. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $106.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.66. The company has a market cap of $33.99 billion, a PE ratio of 22.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.46.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.18 by $0.09. WEC Energy Group had a net margin of 17.75% and a return on equity of 12.39%. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.97 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that WEC Energy Group, Inc. will post 5.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

WEC Energy Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Sunday, June 1st. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 14th will be given a dividend of $0.8975 per share. This represents a $3.59 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, May 14th. This is an increase from WEC Energy Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.84. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is 69.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gale E. Klappa sold 25,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $108.62, for a total transaction of $2,715,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 274,955 shares in the company, valued at $29,865,612.10. This represents a 8.33% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Ulice Payne, Jr. sold 1,150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.17, for a total transaction of $119,795.50. Following the transaction, the director now owns 21,951 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,286,635.67. This trade represents a 4.98% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 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.