WEC Energy Group (NYSE:WEC) reported first-quarter 2017 adjusted earnings of $1.12 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.06 by 5.7% and the year-ago figure of $1.09 by 2.7%.
Revenues
WEC Energy’s total revenue amounted to $2,304 million, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $2,188 million by 5.3%. Reported revenues also surpassed the year-ago figure of $2,194.8 million by 5.0%.
Highlights of the Release
Residential use of electricity in first-quarter 2017 was down 2.1% year over year. Electricity used by small commercial and industrial customers was flat year over year. Electricity used by large commercial and industrial customers, excluding the iron ore mines in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, decreased by 1.2%.
Total operating expenses in the quarter under review increased nearly 5.1% year over year to $1,687.2 million, mainly due to higher cost of sales.
Operating income in the reported quarter was $617.3 million, up 4.8% from $589.3 million a year ago.
The company’s interest expenses in the first quarter increased 3.8% year over year to $104.7 million.
WEC Energy's utilities expanded the customer base in the reported quarter. At the end of first-quarter 2017, the company had an additional 8,000 electric and 23,000 natural gas customers compared with the year-ago quarter.
WEC Energy Group, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
WEC Energy Group, Inc. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise | WEC Energy Group, Inc. Quote
Financial Position
As of Mar 31, 2017, WEC Energy had cash and cash equivalents of $45.7 million compared with $37.5 million as of Dec 31, 2016.
As of Mar 31, 2017, WEC Energy had long-term debts of $9.1 billion, almost flat with the 2016-end level.
In the first quarter of 2017, cash flow from operating activities was $714.6 million, up 2.7% from $695.9 million in the year-ago period.
WEC Energy’s capital expenditure in the first quarter of 2017 was $329.7 million, up 5.7% from the prior-year quarter.
Zacks Rank
WEC Energy currently has a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Peer Releases
American Electric Power Co., Inc. (NYSE:AEP) reported first-quarter 2017 operating earnings of 96 cents per share, lagging the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 97 cents by a penny.
NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) reported first-quarter 2017 adjusted earnings of $1.75 per share, surpassing the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.56 by 12.2%.
FirstEnergy Corp. (NYSE:FE) reported first-quarter 2017 operating earnings of 78 cents per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 71 cents by 9.9%.
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