Welch & Forbes LLC Has $39.49 Million Holdings in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE)

Welch & Forbes LLC lifted its holdings in shares of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 550,794 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 5,384 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $39,487,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of NEE. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its position 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 worth $25,293,000 after buying an additional 5,409 shares during the period. United Advisor Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $235,000. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC grew its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 66.2% during the 3rd quarter. Avidian Wealth Enterprises LLC now owns 12,684 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,072,000 after buying an additional 5,050 shares during the period. Radnor Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 20.3% during the 3rd quarter. Radnor Capital Management LLC now owns 15,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,351,000 after buying an additional 2,700 shares during the period. Finally, Blake Schutter Theil Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,237,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.72% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at NextEra Energy

In other news, CAO James Michael May sold 2,383 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was 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 $1,867,504.43. This represents a 7.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

NextEra Energy Trading Down 0.7 %

NEE opened at $69.99 on Friday. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $55.53 and a twelve month high of $86.10. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $70.28 and a 200 day simple moving average of $76.12. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $143.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.77, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.58.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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%. Analysts predict that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.5665 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.24%. This is a boost from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. NextEra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 67.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $81.00 to $77.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $82.00 to $84.00 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 note on Thursday, January 23rd. Scotiabank lifted 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, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $99.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $85.85.

NextEra Energy 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.