NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) Shares Sold by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. cut its holdings in NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE - Free Report) by 0.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 598,132 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,309 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.'s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $42,880,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Burkett Financial Services LLC raised its stake in NextEra Energy by 1,229.6% in the 4th 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 third quarter worth about $27,000. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of NextEra Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Luken Investment Analytics LLC purchased a new position in shares of NextEra Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. 78.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price 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. Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on NextEra Energy from $84.00 to $79.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Barclays increased their target price on NextEra Energy from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Guggenheim raised their price target on NextEra Energy from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of NextEra Energy from $99.00 to $90.00 in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, NextEra Energy currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $85.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO James Michael May sold 2,383 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $68.09, for a total transaction of $162,258.47. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 27,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,867,504.43. This trade represents a 7.99 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.18% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

NextEra Energy Trading Up 2.3 %

NEE traded up $1.60 on Friday, reaching $71.74. 16,739,967 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 11,463,395. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $53.95 and a twelve month high of $86.10. The company's 50 day moving average is $70.53 and its 200-day moving average is $76.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.47. The company has a market cap of $147.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.29, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.58.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) 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%. Equities analysts predict that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.68 earnings per share for the current year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.5665 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This is a positive change from NextEra Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.16%. NextEra Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 61.13%.

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.