Jefferies Financial Group Begins Coverage on NextEra Energy Partners (NYSE:NEP)

Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of NextEra Energy Partners (NYSE:NEP) in a research report released on Thursday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. The brokerage issued a buy rating and a $28.00 target price on the solar energy provider’s stock.

NEP has been the subject of a number of other reports. Barclays cut NextEra Energy Partners from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and cut their price objective for the company from $32.00 to $25.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed an underweight rating and issued a $25.00 target price on shares of NextEra Energy Partners in a research report on Thursday, May 23rd. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of NextEra Energy Partners from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an outperform rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley lowered shares of NextEra Energy Partners from an equal weight rating to an underweight rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $31.00 to $20.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Mizuho lowered NextEra Energy Partners from a buy rating to a neutral rating and set a $33.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned 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 $32.67.

NextEra Energy Partners Stock Up 3.7 %

NextEra Energy Partners stock opened at $26.79 on Thursday. NextEra Energy Partners has a fifty-two week low of $20.17 and a fifty-two week high of $49.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 1.22 and a current ratio of 1.30. The company has a market cap of $2.51 billion, a PE ratio of 8.78 and a beta of 1.05. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $25.67 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $28.22.

NextEra Energy Partners (NYSE:NEP) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The solar energy provider reported $0.66 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.07. NextEra Energy Partners had a negative return on equity of 0.40% and a net margin of 24.42%. The firm had revenue of $360.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $365.54 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.53 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 22.9% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that NextEra Energy Partners will post 1.74 EPS for the current year.

NextEra Energy Partners Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 6th were issued a dividend of $0.905 per share. This represents a $3.62 annualized dividend and a yield of 13.51%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 6th. This is a boost from NextEra Energy Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.89. NextEra Energy Partners’s payout ratio is 118.69%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NextEra Energy Partners

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of NEP. Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in NextEra Energy Partners in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of NextEra Energy Partners by 208.3% in the 1st quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 928 shares of the solar energy provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 627 shares during the last quarter. Heritage Wealth Advisors acquired a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy Partners during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division acquired a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy Partners during the 1st quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NextEra Energy Partners during the 1st quarter worth approximately $45,000. 66.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NextEra Energy Partners Company Profile

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.