OFI Invest Asset Management Makes New Investment in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE)

OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 503,764 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $34,877,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.8% during the 3rd 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. Verity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in NextEra Energy in the third quarter valued at about $294,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP purchased a new position in NextEra Energy in the third quarter worth about $86,000. Leavell Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,178 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,367,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Finally, Equitable Trust Co. increased its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 20.9% during the 3rd quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 40,639 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,435,000 after purchasing an additional 7,036 shares during the last quarter. 78.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently issued reports on NEE. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of NextEra Energy from $81.00 to $77.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Scotiabank upped their price target on NextEra Energy from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on NextEra Energy from $99.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of NextEra Energy from $82.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $84.00 to $79.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, NextEra Energy has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $85.85.

NextEra Energy Trading Up 4.1 %

Shares of NEE stock opened at $72.86 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $70.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $76.05. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $56.31 and a 12-month high of $86.10. The stock has a market capitalization of $149.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a current ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20.

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

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.5665 dividend. This is a boost from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.06%.

Insider Transactions at NextEra Energy

In related news, CAO James Michael May sold 2,383 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.09, for a total value of $162,258.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 27,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,867,504.43. This trade represents a 7.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

NextEra Energy Company 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.