Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. Boosts Holdings in NextEra Energy Partners, LP (NYSE:NEP)

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of NextEra Energy Partners, LP (NYSE:NEP - Free Report) by 26.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 166,588 shares of the solar energy provider's stock after acquiring an additional 34,553 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. owned 0.18% of NextEra Energy Partners worth $5,066,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. BlackRock Inc. grew its stake in shares of NextEra Energy Partners by 4.9% in the 1st quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 7,609,845 shares of the solar energy provider's stock worth $634,357,000 after buying an additional 356,265 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of NextEra Energy Partners by 18.9% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 4,865,533 shares of the solar energy provider's stock worth $144,506,000 after buying an additional 774,665 shares in the last quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd grew its stake in shares of NextEra Energy Partners by 64.4% in the 3rd quarter. ClearBridge Investments Ltd now owns 3,583,336 shares of the solar energy provider's stock worth $106,425,000 after buying an additional 1,404,318 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its stake in shares of NextEra Energy Partners by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 2,188,292 shares of the solar energy provider's stock worth $162,284,000 after buying an additional 16,707 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1832 Asset Management L.P. grew its stake in shares of NextEra Energy Partners by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 1,542,825 shares of the solar energy provider's stock worth $93,727,000 after buying an additional 43,038 shares in the last quarter. 66.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NextEra Energy Partners Trading Down 0.2 %

NEP traded down $0.05 on Friday, reaching $29.27. 704,484 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,365,006. NextEra Energy Partners, LP has a one year low of $20.17 and a one year high of $64.43. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $28.55 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $28.12. The company has a market cap of $2.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 1.33 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

NextEra Energy Partners (NYSE:NEP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 25th. The solar energy provider reported ($0.35) EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.03 by ($0.38). NextEra Energy Partners had a net margin of 16.00% and a negative return on equity of 1.06%. The business had revenue of $232.00 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $360.03 million. As a group, equities research analysts expect that NextEra Energy Partners, LP will post 0.9 earnings per share for the current year.

NextEra Energy Partners Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 6th were issued a $0.88 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 5th. This represents a $3.52 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 12.03%. This is a positive change from NextEra Energy Partners's previous quarterly dividend of $0.87. NextEra Energy Partners's payout ratio is currently 165.26%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of NextEra Energy Partners to a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 19th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of NextEra Energy Partners from $40.00 to $33.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, December 12th. Marathon Capitl restated an "equal weight" rating on shares of NextEra Energy Partners in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of NextEra Energy Partners from $24.00 to $26.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, CIBC lowered shares of NextEra Energy Partners from a "sector outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $35.00 target price for the company. in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NextEra Energy Partners has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $46.38.

About NextEra Energy Partners

NextEra Energy Partners, LP acquires, owns, and manages contracted clean energy projects in the United States. It owns a portfolio of contracted renewable generation assets consisting of wind, solar, and battery storage projects. The company owns contracted natural gas pipeline assets. NextEra Energy Partners, LP was incorporated in 2014 and is based in Juno Beach, Florida.