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

Shares of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the thirteen research firms that are covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $72.00.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on NEE shares. Barclays initiated coverage on NextEra Energy in a report on Wednesday. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $66.00 target price for the company. Mizuho reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $67.00 price target (up from $65.00) on shares of NextEra Energy in a report on Friday, March 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $74.00 price target on shares of NextEra Energy in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on NextEra Energy from $76.00 to $77.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on NextEra Energy from $84.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 19th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NextEra Energy

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Community Bank of Raymore raised its holdings in NextEra Energy by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Community Bank of Raymore now owns 19,185 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,226,000 after acquiring an additional 1,155 shares during the period. Beech Hill Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in NextEra Energy by 169.8% during the 1st quarter. Beech Hill Advisors Inc. now owns 59,944 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,831,000 after acquiring an additional 37,729 shares during the period. Evanson Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in NextEra Energy by 42.2% during the 1st quarter. Evanson Asset Management LLC now owns 5,192 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $332,000 after acquiring an additional 1,540 shares during the period. Fermata Advisors LLC raised its holdings in NextEra Energy by 76.3% during the 1st quarter. Fermata Advisors LLC now owns 6,183 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $395,000 after acquiring an additional 2,675 shares during the period. Finally, Riverview Trust Co bought a new stake in NextEra Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $118,000. Institutional investors own 78.72% of the company’s stock.

NextEra Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:NEE opened at $63.07 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $59.19 and a 200 day moving average price of $58.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06. The company has a market cap of $129.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.47, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.51. NextEra Energy has a twelve month low of $47.15 and a twelve month high of $79.78.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.52 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $6.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.72 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.51 EPS. Research analysts predict that NextEra Energy will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 27th were issued a $0.515 dividend. This represents a $2.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 26th. This is a positive change from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 57.06%.

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.