NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) Trading 2.8% Higher Following Analyst Upgrade

NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) rose 2.8% during trading on Monday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $80.00 to $82.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. NextEra Energy traded as high as $83.81 and last traded at $83.71. Approximately 1,697,864 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 10,690,063 shares. The stock had previously closed at $81.43.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of NextEra Energy from $69.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on NextEra Energy from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 3rd. Dbs Bank downgraded NextEra Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Bank of America boosted their price target on NextEra Energy from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of NextEra Energy from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $86.54.

Insider Activity

In other NextEra Energy news, EVP Nicole J. Daggs sold 658 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.97, for a total transaction of $50,646.26. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 100 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,697. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NextEra Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. increased its holdings in shares of NextEra Energy by 64.0% in the second quarter. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. now owns 369 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the last quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. raised its position in NextEra Energy by 197.4% in the second quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 339 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 225 shares during the period. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new stake in NextEra Energy in the second quarter valued at $33,000. Maryland Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Family Firm Inc. purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $40,000. 78.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NextEra Energy Stock Up 2.7 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $171.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.56. The business has a 50-day moving average of $82.36 and a 200-day moving average of $76.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.49.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The utilities provider reported $1.03 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $7.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.11 billion. NextEra Energy had a net margin of 24.45% and a return on equity of 11.75%. NextEra Energy’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.94 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.4 EPS for the current year.

NextEra Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.46%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 22nd. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.13%.

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.