FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH Purchases 4,352 Shares of NextEra Energy, Inc. $NEE

Key Points

• Farmers & Merchants Trust Co of Long Beach increased its holdings in NextEra Energy, Inc. by 54.7% during Q2, acquiring an additional 4,352 shares, bringing its total to 12,309 shares valued at approximately $854,000.
• Insider transactions revealed James Michael May, the Treasurer, sold 2,177 shares, decreasing his ownership by 7.30%, while EVP Mark Lemasney sold 846 shares, leading to an 8.37% drop in his holdings.
• Research analysts are mostly optimistic about NextEra Energy, with an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $84.08, although various firms have slightly adjusted their price targets recently.

FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH raised its position in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE - Free Report) by 54.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,309 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 4,352 shares during the period. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH's holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $854,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. boosted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Arkfeld Wealth Strategies L.L.C. now owns 15,249 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,140,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc boosted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 2.3% in the 2nd quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc now owns 6,350 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $441,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Tradition Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,625 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $470,000 after purchasing an additional 143 shares during the last quarter. Conning Inc. boosted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Conning Inc. now owns 14,089 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $999,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Walker Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Walker Asset Management LLC now owns 4,815 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $334,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. 78.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Treasurer James Michael May sold 2,177 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.50, for a total transaction of $168,717.50. Following the sale, the treasurer owned 27,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,143,805. This represents a 7.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Mark Lemasney sold 846 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.90, for a total value of $63,365.40. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 9,267 shares in the company, valued at $694,098.30. The trade was a 8.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 21,369 shares of company stock worth $1,539,610. Insiders own 0.18% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $95.00 price target (down from $96.00) on shares of NextEra Energy in a research report on Thursday. Melius started coverage on NextEra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $77.00 price objective on the stock. HSBC dropped their price objective on NextEra Energy from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 11th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on NextEra Energy from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Melius Research raised NextEra Energy to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, NextEra Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $84.08.

NextEra Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NextEra Energy stock opened at $75.84 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $156.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.65. The stock's 50-day moving average is $72.63 and its 200-day moving average is $71.07. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $61.72 and a one year high of $86.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 0.54 and a quick ratio of 0.45.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The utilities provider reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.01 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.52 billion. NextEra Energy had a return on equity of 12.31% and a net margin of 22.84%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.96 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NextEra Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 28th were issued a dividend of $0.5665 per share. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 28th. NextEra Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.37%.

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.

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