Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based WEC Energy Group, Inc. (WEC) provides regulated natural gas and electricity, and renewable and non-regulated renewable energy services. With a market cap of $29 billion, WEC Energy operates through Wisconsin, Illinois, Other States, Electric Transmission, and Non-Utility Energy Infrastructure segments.
The utilities major has underperformed the broader market over the past year. Over the past 52 weeks, WEC stock has gained 9.3%, lagging behind the S&P 500 Index’s ($SPX) 27% returns. In 2024 alone, WEC is up 10.4% compared to SPX’s 16.8% gains on a YTD basis.
Narrowing the focus, WEC also struggled to keep pace with the S&P 500 Utilities Sector SPDR (XLU). The exchange-traded fund has climbed 18.9% over the past 52 weeks and 18.8% gains on a YTD basis.
Shares of WEC Energy rose 2.2% following the release of its Q2 earnings on Jul. 24. The company’s revenues dropped 3.2% annually to $1.8 billion, while net income attributed to common shareholders declined 27.1% to $211.3 million. However, the company’s EPS of $0.67 surpassed the EPS Wall Street’s estimates by 4.7%. Moreover, WEC Energy reaffirmed the full-year EPS guidance range of $4.80 to 4.90 compared to the $4.63 reported in the previous fiscal year, which boosted investor confidence.
For the current fiscal year, ending in December, analysts expect WEC Energy to report an EPS growth of 5.4% to $4.88. The company’s earnings surprise history is robust. It beat or matched the consensus estimates in all of the last four quarters.
Among the 15 analysts covering the WEC stock, the consensus rating is a “Hold.” That’s based on four “Strong Buy” ratings, eight “Holds,” one “Moderate Sell,” and two “Strong Sells.”
This configuration has been consistent over the past months.
Although WEC is trading above the mean price target of $90.32, the Street-high target of $103, set by Wells Fargo (WFC) analyst Neil Kalton on Aug. 21, represents a potential upside of 10.8% from current price levels.
On the date of publication, Aditya Sarawgi did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.
