NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) Shares Purchased by Cerity Partners LLC

Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) by 34.5% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 835,023 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 214,199 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $50,719,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC bought a new stake in NextEra Energy in the second quarter valued at $32,000. Country Trust Bank lifted its stake in NextEra Energy by 975.6% in the third quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 400 shares during the last quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC lifted its stake in NextEra Energy by 124.1% in the first quarter. GeoWealth Management LLC now owns 549 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the last quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp raised its position in NextEra Energy by 59.8% in the third quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 556 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Valued Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in NextEra Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.72% of the company’s stock.

NextEra Energy Stock Performance

NEE opened at $64.10 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $131.56 billion, a PE ratio of 17.73, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $47.15 and a 1 year high of $79.78. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $59.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.37.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.03. NextEra Energy had a return on equity of 11.73% and a net margin of 26.00%. The firm had revenue of $6.88 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.72 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.51 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.44 EPS for the current year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 27th were given a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.21%. This is a boost from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 26th. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 57.06%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on NEE. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on NextEra Energy from $84.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on NextEra Energy from $76.00 to $77.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Barclays began coverage on NextEra Energy in a research note on Wednesday. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $66.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com cut NextEra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Monday, February 19th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $74.00 price target on shares of NextEra Energy in a research note on Tuesday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $72.00.

NextEra Energy Company Profile

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.