NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) Shares Bought by United Community Bank

United Community Bank lifted its holdings in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) by 7.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 13,591 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 910 shares during the quarter. United Community Bank’s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $974,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Burkett Financial Services LLC increased its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 1,229.6% in the fourth quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC now owns 359 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 332 shares in the last quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the third quarter worth approximately $33,000. Luken Investment Analytics LLC purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Midwest Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. 78.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NEE has been the subject of several research reports. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $82.00 to $84.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $99.00 to $90.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $81.00 to $77.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $84.00 to $79.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 27th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $85.85.

NextEra Energy Trading Up 4.1 %

Shares of NEE stock opened at $72.86 on Friday. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $56.31 and a 1 year high of $86.10. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $70.30 and its 200 day simple moving average is $76.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $149.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53. NextEra Energy had a net margin of 28.06% and a return on equity of 11.85%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.68 EPS for the current year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.5665 dividend. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This is a positive change from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. NextEra Energy’s payout ratio is 67.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at NextEra Energy

In other NextEra Energy news, CAO James Michael May sold 2,383 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.09, for a total value of $162,258.47. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 27,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,867,504.43. The trade was a 7.99 % decrease in their position. 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.

NextEra Energy 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.