NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) Shares Sold by Great Lakes Retirement Inc.

Great Lakes Retirement Inc. cut its stake in shares of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) by 79.8% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 20,256 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 80,179 shares during the period. Great Lakes Retirement Inc.’s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $1,230,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Country Trust Bank grew its holdings in NextEra Energy by 975.6% during the 3rd quarter. Country Trust Bank now owns 441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp lifted its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 59.8% during the 3rd quarter. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp now owns 556 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC purchased a new position in NextEra Energy in the second quarter valued at $32,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in NextEra Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, West Tower Group LLC purchased a new stake in NextEra Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $36,000. 78.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NextEra Energy Price Performance

NextEra Energy stock traded up $0.16 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $63.95. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 7,800,915 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,984,015. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.55. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $47.15 and a fifty-two week high of $79.78. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.25 billion, a PE ratio of 17.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.50. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $57.72 and its 200 day simple moving average is $58.58.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 25th. The utilities provider reported $0.52 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.49 by $0.03. NextEra Energy had a net margin of 26.00% and a return on equity of 11.73%. The firm had revenue of $6.88 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.72 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.51 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.44 earnings per share for the current year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 27th were paid a dividend of $0.515 per share. This represents a $2.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, February 26th. This is an increase from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. NextEra Energy’s payout ratio is 57.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on NEE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $65.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 29th. StockNews.com cut shares of NextEra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, February 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $74.00 price objective on shares of NextEra Energy in a report on Tuesday, January 30th. Citigroup assumed coverage on NextEra Energy in a report on Friday, December 8th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $69.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on NextEra Energy from $84.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 19th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.46.

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.