JPMorgan Chase & Co. Upgrades NextEra Energy Partners (NYSE:NEP) to "Neutral"

JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of NextEra Energy Partners (NYSE:NEP - Free Report) from an underweight rating to a neutral rating in a research report released on Thursday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. The brokerage currently has $22.00 target price on the solar energy provider's stock, down from their prior target price of $25.00.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on NEP. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on NextEra Energy Partners from $28.00 to $26.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on NextEra Energy Partners in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. They issued an "underperform" rating and a $15.00 target price on the stock. Barclays reaffirmed an "underweight" rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of NextEra Energy Partners in a research report on Friday, October 4th. UBS Group dropped their target price on NextEra Energy Partners from $28.00 to $27.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Finally, CIBC dropped their target price on NextEra Energy Partners from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, NextEra Energy Partners currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $27.85.

NextEra Energy Partners Stock Down 0.1 %

NextEra Energy Partners stock traded down $0.03 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $20.98. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,995,694 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,459,118. The firm's 50 day moving average is $25.53 and its 200 day moving average is $27.73. The company has a market cap of $1.96 billion, a PE ratio of 6.88 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.30 and a quick ratio of 1.22. NextEra Energy Partners has a 52-week low of $20.28 and a 52-week high of $35.15.

NextEra Energy Partners (NYSE:NEP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The solar energy provider reported ($0.43) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.51 by ($0.94). The business had revenue of $319.00 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $332.25 million. NextEra Energy Partners had a negative return on equity of 0.40% and a net margin of 24.42%. The firm's revenue was up 3.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.57 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that NextEra Energy Partners will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current year.

NextEra Energy Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, November 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, November 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.9175 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, November 6th. NextEra Energy Partners's dividend payout ratio is 118.69%.

Institutional Trading of NextEra Energy Partners

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in NextEra Energy Partners by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC now owns 29,190 shares of the solar energy provider's stock valued at $807,000 after buying an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. Brown Miller Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in NextEra Energy Partners by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter. Brown Miller Wealth Management LLC now owns 18,459 shares of the solar energy provider's stock valued at $509,000 after buying an additional 433 shares during the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC grew its holdings in NextEra Energy Partners by 0.9% in the 2nd quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC now owns 48,363 shares of the solar energy provider's stock valued at $1,336,000 after buying an additional 454 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in NextEra Energy Partners by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 26,186 shares of the solar energy provider's stock valued at $724,000 after buying an additional 509 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC grew its holdings in NextEra Energy Partners by 4.6% in the 2nd quarter. Jaffetilchin Investment Partners LLC now owns 13,088 shares of the solar energy provider's stock valued at $362,000 after buying an additional 581 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 66.01% of the company's stock.

About NextEra Energy Partners

NextEra Energy Partners, LP acquires, owns, and manages contracted clean energy projects in the United States. It owns a portfolio of contracted renewable generation assets consisting of wind, solar, and battery storage projects. The company owns contracted natural gas pipeline assets. NextEra Energy Partners, LP was incorporated in 2014 and is based in Juno Beach, Florida.