WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Issues Earnings Results, Beats Estimates By $0.07 EPS

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The utilities provider reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.90 by $0.07, Briefing.com reports. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.17% and a net margin of 14.98%. The firm had revenue of $2.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.61 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. WEC Energy Group updated its FY24 guidance to $4.80-4.90 EPS.

WEC Energy Group Trading Up 0.3 %

WEC traded up $0.25 during trading on Thursday, reaching $82.84. 796,895 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,128,487. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $80.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a current ratio of 0.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.13 billion, a PE ratio of 19.64, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.40. WEC Energy Group has a fifty-two week low of $75.13 and a fifty-two week high of $96.17.

WEC Energy Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Saturday, June 1st. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 14th will be issued a $0.835 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 13th. This represents a $3.34 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.03%. WEC Energy Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 79.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on WEC. StockNews.com cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Saturday, January 13th. Bank of America restated an “underperform” rating and set a $78.00 price target (down previously from $84.00) on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Scotiabank cut their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $96.00 to $90.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 22nd. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of WEC Energy Group from $89.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of WEC Energy Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $88.00 price target for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $86.29.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of WEC Energy Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.69, for a total transaction of $2,925,694.20. Following the transaction, the chairman now directly owns 274,782 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,622,595.58. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, CEO Scott J. Lauber sold 2,830 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $78.89, for a total value of $223,258.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 43,125 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,402,131.25. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Gale E. Klappa sold 37,180 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $78.69, for a total transaction of $2,925,694.20. Following the sale, the chairman now directly owns 274,782 shares in the company, valued at $21,622,595.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% 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.