Farmers Trust Co. Decreases Stake in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE)

Farmers Trust Co. cut its position in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) by 2.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 97,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,919 shares during the quarter. NextEra Energy accounts for 1.3% of Farmers Trust Co.’s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Farmers Trust Co.’s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $6,997,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in NextEra Energy by 197.4% during the 2nd quarter. Semmax Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 339 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 225 shares during the last quarter. Burkett Financial Services LLC increased its stake in NextEra Energy by 1,229.6% in the fourth 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. Reston Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. 78.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Dbs Bank cut NextEra Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on NextEra Energy in a research report on Thursday, September 19th. They set a “hold” rating and a $87.00 price target on the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on NextEra Energy from $83.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of NextEra Energy from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $87.15.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Nicole J. Daggs sold 4,007 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.57, for a total value of $302,808.99. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,792 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,193,401.44. This represents a 20.24 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.18% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

NextEra Energy Price Performance

NEE stock traded down $0.20 on Wednesday, reaching $70.23. 5,059,226 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,216,578. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $74.77 and a 200-day moving average of $77.41. The firm has a market cap of $144.42 billion, a PE ratio of 20.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.33, a current ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $53.95 and a twelve month high of $86.10.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The utilities provider reported $1.03 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.98 by $0.05. NextEra Energy had a net margin of 26.49% and a return on equity of 11.94%. The firm had revenue of $7.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.11 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.94 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NextEra Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Friday, November 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.515 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 22nd. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.93%. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.95%.

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.