NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) Shares Sold by Prudential PLC

Key Points

• Prudential PLC reduced its holdings in NextEra Energy by 39.4%, now owning 145,801 shares, valued at approximately $10.34 million.
• Various hedge funds, including Bellwether Advisors and IMA Advisory Services, recently acquired new positions in NextEra Energy, indicating increased institutional interest.
• NextEra Energy announced a quarterly dividend of $0.5665 per share, with a dividend yield of 3.2%, to be paid on September 15th.

Prudential PLC cut its holdings in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE - Free Report) by 39.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 145,801 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 94,611 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC's holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $10,336,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of NEE. Bellwether Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Copia Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in shares of NextEra Energy by 237.7% during the first quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 520 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $37,000 after buying an additional 366 shares during the period. Finally, Hughes Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 78.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NEE. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $102.00 to $97.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. HSBC cut their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, NextEra Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $84.42.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Robert Coffey sold 7,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.84, for a total transaction of $538,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 26,539 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,906,561.76. This trade represents a 22.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Treasurer James Michael May sold 2,177 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.50, for a total transaction of $168,717.50. Following the sale, the treasurer directly owned 27,662 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,143,805. The trade was a 7.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

NextEra Energy Trading Up 4.4%

Shares of NEE stock traded up $3.16 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $75.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 23,396,505 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,521,072. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $72.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $70.61. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $61.72 and a 12-month high of $86.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $155.27 billion, a PE ratio of 26.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.63.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE - Get Free Report) last issued its 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. NextEra Energy had a net margin of 22.84% and a return on equity of 12.31%. The business had revenue of $6.70 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.52 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.96 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NextEra Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.5665 per share. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, August 28th. NextEra Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) 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.