NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and seven have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $85.92.

A number of research firms have issued reports on NEE. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of NextEra Energy from $82.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on NextEra Energy from $84.00 to $79.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on NextEra Energy from $81.00 to $77.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Scotiabank boosted their price target on NextEra Energy from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price target on NextEra Energy from $95.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CAO James Michael May sold 2,383 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.09, for a total transaction of $162,258.47. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 27,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,867,504.43. This represents a 7.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NextEra Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of NEE. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $3,484,197,000. Boston Partners purchased a new position in NextEra Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $244,169,000. Two Sigma Advisers LP acquired a new stake in NextEra Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $240,269,000. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of NextEra Energy by 49.8% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 9,543,552 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $676,008,000 after purchasing an additional 3,172,405 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 46.7% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 7,910,346 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $567,093,000 after buying an additional 2,517,369 shares during the period. 78.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NextEra Energy Stock Up 0.6 %

NYSE:NEE opened at $70.44 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $144.90 billion, a PE ratio of 20.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.58. NextEra Energy has a 52 week low of $61.31 and a 52 week high of $86.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $70.67 and a 200-day moving average of $75.08.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.53. NextEra Energy had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 28.06%. Analysts predict that NextEra Energy will post 3.68 EPS for the current year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th were paid a dividend of $0.5665 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 28th. This is a positive change from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 67.06%.

About NextEra Energy

NextEra Energy, Inc, through its subsidiaries, generates, transmits, distributes, and sells electric power to retail and wholesale customers in North America. The company generates electricity through wind, solar, nuclear,natural gas, and other clean energy. It also develops, constructs, and operates long-term contracted assets that consists of clean energy solutions, such as renewable generation facilities, battery storage projects, and electric transmission facilities; sells energy commodities; and owns, develops, constructs, manages and operates electric generation facilities in wholesale energy markets.