Trust Co. of Vermont Increases Stake in NextEra Energy, Inc. $NEE

Trust Co. of Vermont grew its stake in shares of NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NEE) by 3.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 413,677 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 13,842 shares during the period. NextEra Energy accounts for about 1.4% of Trust Co. of Vermont’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in NextEra Energy were worth $33,210,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in NextEra Energy by 0.6% during the third quarter. Sax Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 19,380 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,463,000 after acquiring an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. apricus wealth LLC lifted its stake in NextEra Energy by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. apricus wealth LLC now owns 3,272 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $247,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. Isthmus Partners LLC now owns 6,590 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $497,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Fingerlakes Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 0.8% during the third quarter. Fingerlakes Wealth Management Inc. now owns 16,215 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,224,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Heritage Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in shares of NextEra Energy by 1.0% during the third quarter. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. now owns 12,320 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $930,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.72% of the company’s stock.

NextEra Energy Trading Up 0.1%

NEE opened at $92.95 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $91.02 and a 200 day moving average of $84.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.35. NextEra Energy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $61.72 and a 12 month high of $95.91. The firm has a market cap of $193.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.25 and a beta of 0.74.

NextEra Energy (NYSE:NEE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $6.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.07 billion. NextEra Energy had a return on equity of 12.18% and a net margin of 24.93%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 20.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.53 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that NextEra Energy, Inc. will post 3.68 EPS for the current year.

NextEra Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Friday, February 27th were issued a dividend of $0.6232 per share. This represents a $2.49 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 27th. This is a boost from NextEra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. NextEra Energy’s payout ratio is currently 75.68%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Treasurer James Michael May sold 7,161 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.27, for a total value of $646,423.47. Following the sale, the treasurer owned 26,719 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,411,924.13. This represents a 21.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Charles E. Sieving sold 30,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.00, for a total transaction of $2,700,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 167,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,073,290. This trade represents a 15.19% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 190,816 shares of company stock valued at $17,075,619 over the last 90 days. 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NEE has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Erste Group Bank upgraded NextEra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 18th. BTIG Research restated a “buy” rating and set a $103.00 price target on shares of NextEra Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Mizuho set a $90.00 price objective on NextEra Energy and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on NextEra Energy from $87.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on NextEra Energy from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $94.72.

NextEra Energy Profile

NextEra Energy, Inc (NYSE: NEE), headquartered in Juno Beach, Florida, is a leading clean energy company with both regulated utility operations and competitive renewable generation businesses. The company’s principal operating subsidiaries include Florida Power & Light Company (FPL), a regulated electric utility serving customers in Florida, and NextEra Energy Resources, which develops, constructs, owns and operates a large portfolio of wind, solar and energy storage projects. Together these businesses provide electricity supply, transmission and distribution services as well as utility-scale renewable generation and related services.

NextEra’s activities cover the full lifecycle of power assets, from project development and construction to operation, maintenance and asset optimization.