Analysts Set NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) Target Price at $85.85

Shares of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) have been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the fourteen analysts that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $85.85.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on NextEra Energy from $81.00 to $77.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on NextEra Energy from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on NextEra Energy from $84.00 to $79.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on NextEra Energy from $99.00 to $90.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on NextEra Energy from $82.00 to $84.00 in a report on Monday, January 27th.

NextEra Energy Stock Performance

NEE opened at $70.51 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $70.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.16. NextEra Energy has a 1 year low of $55.26 and a 1 year high of $86.10. The company has a market capitalization of $145.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a current ratio of 0.47 and a quick ratio of 0.38.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $0.53. NextEra Energy had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 28.06%. Equities analysts expect that NextEra Energy will post 3.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.5665 per share. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This is a boost from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. NextEra Energy’s payout ratio is currently 67.06%.

Insider Transactions at NextEra Energy

In other news, CAO James Michael May sold 2,383 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.09, for a total transaction of $162,258.47. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 27,427 shares in the company, valued at $1,867,504.43. The trade was a 7.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NextEra Energy

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in NEE. Howard Capital Management Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.8% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 299,215 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,293,000 after buying an additional 5,409 shares during the period. Old Port Advisors bought a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $223,000. Jacobsen Capital Management boosted its stake in shares of NextEra Energy by 6.0% in the third quarter. Jacobsen Capital Management now owns 4,096 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $346,000 after buying an additional 232 shares during the period. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. boosted its stake in shares of NextEra Energy by 6.7% in the third quarter. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. now owns 4,811 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $407,000 after buying an additional 304 shares during the period. Finally, Avitas Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.3% in the third quarter. Avitas Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,773 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,277,000 after buying an additional 485 shares during the period. 78.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.