NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) Stock Price Up 0.6%

NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) shares were up 0.6% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $73.36 and last traded at $73.27. Approximately 2,117,607 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 11,797,998 shares. The stock had previously closed at $72.85.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on NEE shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $84.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th. BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on NextEra Energy from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday. Mizuho lifted their price objective on NextEra Energy from $67.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. Barclays started coverage on NextEra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $66.00 price target for the company. Finally, Scotiabank boosted their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $69.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $71.93.

NextEra Energy Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $63.01 and a two-hundred day moving average of $60.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.12, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $153.22 billion, a PE ratio of 20.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.50.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.80 by $0.11. NextEra Energy had a net margin of 27.62% and a return on equity of 11.72%. The business had revenue of $5.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.28 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 27th were issued a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.76%. This is an increase from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 26th. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.13%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NextEra Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NEE. Avitas Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in NextEra Energy by 2.9% in the fourth quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 37,843 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,299,000 after buying an additional 1,057 shares during the period. Stiles Financial Services Inc raised its stake in shares of NextEra Energy by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Stiles Financial Services Inc now owns 35,180 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,137,000 after acquiring an additional 2,899 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ lifted its holdings in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.7% during the 3rd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 383,932 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $21,995,000 after acquiring an additional 6,325 shares in the last quarter. Asio Capital LLC purchased a new stake in NextEra Energy during the 4th quarter worth $2,701,000. Finally, AJOVista LLC acquired a new stake in NextEra Energy in the 4th quarter valued at $162,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.72% of the company’s stock.

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.