FE vs. WEC: FirstEnergy vs. WEC Energy Stock Comparison

November 11, 2026

How do FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC) both fall under the Utilities industry group, but FE is classified in Electric Utilities while WEC is classified in Multi-Utilities.

Company profile comparison for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC)
Profile Item	FE	WEC
Name	FirstEnergy Corp.	WEC Energy Group Inc.
Country/Region	United States	United States
GICS Sector	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry Group	Utilities	Utilities
GICS Industry	Electric Utilities	Multi-Utilities
GICS Sub-Industry	Electric Utilities	Multi-Utilities
Market Capitalization	26.88 billion USD	38.12 billion USD
Currency	USD	USD
Exchange	NYSE	NYSE
Listing Date	November 10, 1997	March 17, 1980
Security Type	Common Stock	Common Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

WEC

GSPC

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

Loading price history…

Trailing total returns for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

Loading price history…

Calendar-year total returns for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC)
Metric	FE	WEC
Total Return (1Y)	5.62%	7.80%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)	14.20%	18.04%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)	8.32%	9.22%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

WEC

GSPC

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

Loading price history…

Distribution of monthly total returns for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC)
Metric	FE	WEC
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)	16.31%	17.21%
Beta (5Y)	0.39	0.43
Max Drawdown (5Y)	-28.59%	-26.02%
Avg. Volume (3M)	4.29M	2.71M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

FE and WEC are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC)
Metric	FE	WEC
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)	0.08	0.20
Sortino Ratio (1Y)	0.11	0.31

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

WEC Energy (WEC) at 12.49% sits in the top ROE quartile, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 10.04% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for WEC.

FE

Utilities industry group

10.04%

Max: 17.99%
Q3: 12.01%
FE: 10.04%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

WEC

Utilities industry group

12.49%

Max: 17.99%
WEC: 12.49%
Q3: 12.01%
Median: 9.44%
Q1: 7.56%
Min: 2.17%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their ROE against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

WEC Energy (WEC) at 17.53% keeps a top-quartile share of each sales dollar as profit, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 7.49% keeps a bottom-quartile share.

FE

Utilities industry group

7.49%

Max: 28.78%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
FE: 7.49%
Min: -0.20%

WEC

Utilities industry group

17.53%

Max: 28.78%
WEC: 17.53%
Q3: 17.30%
Median: 12.73%
Q1: 9.18%
Min: -0.20%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their net margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Both FirstEnergy (FE) at 21.24% and WEC Energy (WEC) at 25.44% run core operations about as efficiently as their industries’ norm — neither stands out on operating profitability.

FE

Utilities industry group

21.24%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
Median: 23.62%
FE: 21.24%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

WEC

Utilities industry group

25.44%

Max: 53.83%
Q3: 31.12%
WEC: 25.44%
Median: 23.62%
Q1: 15.45%
Min: -4.90%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their operating margin against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC)
Metric	FE	WEC
ROE (TTM)	10.04%	12.49%
ROA (TTM)	3.66%	3.08%
Net Margin (TTM)	7.49%	17.53%
Operating Margin (TTM)	21.24%	25.44%
Gross Margin (TTM)	69.63%	42.36%

Growth

Revenue Growth

WEC Energy (WEC) at 13.96% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 12.01% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for WEC.

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Both FirstEnergy (FE) at 3.53% and WEC Energy (WEC) at -0.41% land near their industries' usual EPS growth ranges, so bottom-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC)
Metric	FE	WEC
Revenue Growth (YoY)	12.01%	13.96%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)	6.59%	0.70%
EPS Growth (YoY)	3.53%	-0.41%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)	35.34%	2.63%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both FirstEnergy (FE) at 0.38 and WEC Energy (WEC) at 0.53 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

FE

Utilities industry group

0.38

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
FE: 0.38
Min: 0.29

WEC

Utilities industry group

0.53

Max: 1.90
Q3: 1.17
Median: 0.88
Q1: 0.66
WEC: 0.53
Min: 0.29

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their current ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

WEC Energy (WEC) at 1.54 carries an industry-typical debt-to-equity mix, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 2.07 uses more debt funding than most peers.

FE

Utilities industry group

2.07

Max: 2.63
FE: 2.07
Q3: 1.77
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

WEC

Utilities industry group

1.54

Max: 2.63
Q3: 1.77
WEC: 1.54
Median: 1.35
Q1: 0.84
Min: 0.00

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC)
Metric	FE	WEC
Current Ratio (MRQ)	0.38	0.53
Debt / Equity (MRQ)	2.07	1.54
Net Debt / EBITDA	5.85	5.66

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

FirstEnergy (FE) at 3.90% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while WEC Energy (WEC) at 3.17% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, FE the richer one.

FE

Utilities industry group

3.90%

Max: 6.66%
FE: 3.90%
Q3: 3.58%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

WEC

Utilities industry group

3.17%

Max: 6.66%
Q3: 3.58%
WEC: 3.17%
Median: 2.85%
Q1: 0.66%
Min: 0.00%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

WEC Energy (WEC) at 68.18% pays out a band-typical share of earnings, while FirstEnergy (FE) at 87.92% distributes more than its industry norm — less retained, thinner cover.

FE

Utilities industry group

87.92%

Max: 113.04%
FE: 87.92%
Q3: 68.72%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

WEC

Utilities industry group

68.18%

Max: 113.04%
Q3: 68.72%
WEC: 68.18%
Median: 56.38%
Q1: 32.38%
Min: 0.00%

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC)
Metric	FE	WEC
Dividend Yield (TTM)	3.90%	3.17%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)	87.92%	68.18%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Both FirstEnergy (FE) at 22.43 and WEC Energy (WEC) at 21.07 land around their industries’ usual P/E ratio levels — neither is getting a clear earnings-multiple discount or premium versus peers.

FE

Utilities industry group

22.43

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
FE: 22.43
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

WEC

Utilities industry group

21.07

Max: 31.22
Q3: 23.30
WEC: 21.07
Median: 19.64
Q1: 15.17
Min: 3.34

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

FirstEnergy (FE) at 1.68 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while WEC Energy (WEC) at 3.69 sits in the pricier quartile — WEC costs more per dollar of sales.

FE

Utilities industry group

1.68

Max: 6.35
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
FE: 1.68
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

WEC

Utilities industry group

3.69

Max: 6.35
WEC: 3.69
Q3: 3.63
Median: 2.63
Q1: 1.52
Min: 0.00

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

FirstEnergy (FE) at 2.07 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while WEC Energy (WEC) at 2.62 carries an above-peer premium to book — WEC is pricier on assets.

FE

Utilities industry group

2.07

Max: 3.12
Q3: 2.21
FE: 2.07
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

WEC

Utilities industry group

2.62

Max: 3.12
WEC: 2.62
Q3: 2.21
Median: 1.83
Q1: 1.46
Min: 0.34

FirstEnergy (FE) vs. WEC Energy (WEC): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Utilities industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for FirstEnergy (FE) and WEC Energy (WEC)
Metric	FE	WEC
P/E Ratio (TTM)	22.43	21.07
P/S Ratio (TTM)	1.68	3.69
P/B Ratio (MRQ)	2.07	2.62
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)	-9.48%	-5.16%