Essential Planning LLC. Buys New Stake in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE)

Essential Planning LLC. bought a new stake in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 51,145 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,978,000.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NEE. Burkett Financial Services LLC increased its holdings in NextEra Energy by 1,229.6% in the 4th quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC now owns 359 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 332 shares during the last quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the third quarter worth $33,000. Luken Investment Analytics LLC acquired a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.72% of the company’s stock.

NextEra Energy Trading Down 1.3 %

Shares of NextEra Energy stock opened at $73.03 on Thursday. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $58.88 and a 52-week high of $86.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $70.46 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.95. The firm has a market cap of $150.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.58.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $0.53. NextEra Energy had a net margin of 28.06% and a return on equity of 11.85%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.5665 dividend. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This is an increase from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 67.06%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $81.00 to $77.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $82.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. 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 note on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, NextEra Energy presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at NextEra Energy

In related news, CAO James Michael May sold 2,383 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $68.09, for a total transaction of $162,258.47. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 27,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,867,504.43. This represents a 7.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

About NextEra Energy

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.