Vicus Capital Acquires New Position in NextEra Energy, Inc. $NEE

Key Points

• Vicus Capital has acquired a new position in NextEra Energy by purchasing 3,216 shares valued at approximately $223,000 during the second quarter.
• Institutional investors now own 78.72% of NextEra Energy's stock, highlighting strong institutional interest in the company, especially with Vanguard and Goldman Sachs increasing their stakes.
• NextEra Energy has recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.5665 per share, representing a 2.9% yield and a payout ratio of 79.02%.

Vicus Capital bought a new position in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 3,216 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $223,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in NextEra Energy by 1.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 207,322,418 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $14,697,086,000 after purchasing an additional 2,025,193 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 23,353,245 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,655,512,000 after buying an additional 262,819 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. grew its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 6.7% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 21,269,146 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,507,770,000 after buying an additional 1,336,259 shares in the last quarter. GQG Partners LLC grew its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 58.4% during the 1st quarter. GQG Partners LLC now owns 17,236,502 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,221,896,000 after buying an additional 6,352,798 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of NextEra Energy by 20.7% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,446,413 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,165,748,000 after buying an additional 2,815,629 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 78.72% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NEE has been the subject of a number of research reports. Melius initiated coverage on shares of NextEra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $77.00 price objective for the company. HSBC reduced their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $88.00 to $86.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 11th. Mizuho set a $78.00 price objective on shares of NextEra Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $95.00 price objective (down previously from $96.00) on shares of NextEra Energy in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on NextEra Energy from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, NextEra Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $84.08.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Michael Dunne sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.79, for a total transaction of $707,900.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 62,064 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,393,510.56. The trade was a 13.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Treasurer James Michael May sold 2,177 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.50, for a total transaction of $168,717.50. Following the transaction, the treasurer owned 27,662 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,143,805. This trade represents a 7.30% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 21,369 shares of company stock valued at $1,539,610. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

NextEra Energy Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NextEra Energy stock opened at $78.10 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $160.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.31, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.66. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $72.82 and its 200-day moving average price is $71.21. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $61.72 and a 52-week high of $86.10.

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

NextEra Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 28th were paid a dividend of $0.5665 per share. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 28th. NextEra Energy's payout ratio is 79.02%.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.