Evercore ISI Lowers NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) Price Target to $79.00

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) had its target price cut by research analysts at Evercore ISI from $84.00 to $79.00 in a research report issued to clients and investors on Monday. The brokerage presently has an “in-line” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Evercore ISI’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 8.39% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on NEE. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on NextEra Energy from $83.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded NextEra Energy from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Scotiabank raised their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price objective on NextEra Energy from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. 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.com, NextEra Energy has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $85.85.

NextEra Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE NEE traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $72.89. 9,476,227 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 11,617,555. The company’s 50 day moving average is $73.02 and its 200 day moving average is $77.19. NextEra Energy has a one year low of $53.95 and a one year high of $86.10. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a current ratio of 0.41 and a quick ratio of 0.33. The stock has a market capitalization of $149.88 billion, a PE ratio of 21.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.58.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53. NextEra Energy had a net margin of 26.49% and a return on equity of 11.94%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that NextEra Energy will post 3.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NextEra Energy news, EVP Nicole J. Daggs sold 4,007 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NextEra Energy

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV raised its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. Tandem Capital Management Corp ADV now owns 9,935 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $840,000 after buying an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Insight Folios Inc increased its holdings in NextEra Energy by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Insight Folios Inc now owns 8,439 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $713,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Taylor & Morgan Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in NextEra Energy by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Taylor & Morgan Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,744 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $655,000 after buying an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Osborne Partners Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.2% during the third quarter. Osborne Partners Capital Management LLC now owns 10,724 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $906,000 after purchasing an additional 128 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Trust Walden Corp grew its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Boston Trust Walden Corp now owns 30,720 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,597,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. 78.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.