WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) Rating Lowered to Sell at The Goldman Sachs Group

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) was downgraded by research analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have a $100.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock, down from their prior price target of $106.00. The Goldman Sachs Group’s price target would indicate a potential downside of 3.33% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other research firms have also weighed in on WEC. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on WEC Energy Group from $115.00 to $124.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised WEC Energy Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the company from $106.00 to $108.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Scotiabank set a $115.00 price objective on WEC Energy Group and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of WEC Energy Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 21st. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of WEC Energy Group from $99.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, WEC Energy Group presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $106.33.

WEC Energy Group Stock Performance

Shares of WEC opened at $103.44 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.23. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $106.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $103.12. WEC Energy Group has a 12 month low of $77.47 and a 12 month high of $111.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.45.

WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.27 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.18 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.81 billion. WEC Energy Group had a return on equity of 12.94% and a net margin of 17.95%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.97 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that WEC Energy Group will post 5.23 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at WEC Energy Group

In other WEC Energy Group news, VP Joshua M. Erickson sold 2,155 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $107.77, for a total transaction of $232,244.35. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 2,686 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $289,470.22. This trade represents a 44.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.50% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of WEC Energy Group

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in WEC. Truvestments Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased 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 buying an additional 268 shares during the last quarter. Nova Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of WEC Energy Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in WEC Energy Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in WEC Energy Group in the first quarter worth $28,000. 77.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.