NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) Shares Down 0.4%

Shares of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) traded down 0.4% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $83.01 and last traded at $83.07. 1,492,188 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 10,915,919 shares. The stock had previously closed at $83.43.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $85.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 23rd. Scotiabank raised their price objective on NextEra Energy from $73.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 20th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on NextEra Energy from $74.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Finally, Mizuho downgraded shares of NextEra Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and set a $71.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $81.50.

NextEra Energy Price Performance

The stock has a 50 day moving average of $77.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $71.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $173.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.07, a P/E/G ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.56.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $6.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.29 billion. NextEra Energy had a net margin of 24.45% and a return on equity of 11.75%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.88 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.39 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NextEra Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 16th. Investors of record on Friday, August 30th will be given a dividend of $0.515 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 30th. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.43%. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling at NextEra Energy

In other news, EVP Nicole J. Daggs sold 658 shares of the company’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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 100 shares in the company, valued at $7,697. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NextEra Energy

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of NextEra Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,561,055,000. M&G Plc bought a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $303,065,000. Zimmer Partners LP raised its stake in shares of NextEra Energy by 8,447.5% in the first quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 2,735,200 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $174,807,000 after purchasing an additional 2,703,200 shares in the last quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System lifted its position in NextEra Energy by 400.7% in the first quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System now owns 2,812,198 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $179,728,000 after purchasing an additional 2,250,500 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its holdings in NextEra Energy by 57.0% in the 2nd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 5,957,220 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $421,831,000 after buying an additional 2,163,437 shares during the period. 78.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.