Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. Buys 4,426 Shares of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE)

Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its stake in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE - Free Report) by 13.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 38,169 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 4,426 shares during the period. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co.'s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $2,736,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of NEE. Burkett Financial Services LLC grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 332 shares during the period. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $33,000. Luken Investment Analytics LLC bought a new position in NextEra Energy during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Midwest Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in NextEra Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. 78.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NextEra Energy Trading Up 2.8 %

NYSE NEE traded up $1.98 on Thursday, reaching $72.46. The company had a trading volume of 5,172,273 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,613,464. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $61.31 and a 52 week high of $86.10. The stock's 50 day moving average is $70.71 and its 200-day moving average is $74.87. 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 cap of $149.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.50, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.58.

Remove Ads

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53. NextEra Energy had a return on equity of 11.85% and a net margin of 28.06%. Equities analysts predict that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th were issued a $0.5665 dividend. This is a positive change from NextEra Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 28th. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.13%. NextEra Energy's payout ratio is 67.06%.

Insider Activity at NextEra Energy

In other NextEra Energy news, CAO James Michael May sold 2,383 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 27,427 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,867,504.43. The trade was a 7.99 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.18% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

NEE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Evercore ISI cut their target price 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. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on NextEra Energy from $82.00 to $84.00 in a research report on Monday, January 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on NextEra Energy from $90.00 to $91.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $89.00 price target on shares of NextEra Energy in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Scotiabank upped their price target on shares of NextEra Energy from $92.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $85.92.

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.