In the latest trading session, NextEra Energy (NEE) closed at $73.88, marking a +1.18% move from the previous day. This move outpaced the S&P 500's daily gain of 0.83%. On the other hand, the Dow registered a gain of 0.77%, and the technology-centric Nasdaq increased by 1.02%.
Prior to today's trading, shares of the parent company of Florida Power & Light Co. had gained 4.49% outpaced the Utilities sector's gain of 0.18% and lagged the S&P 500's gain of 4.99%.
Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of NextEra Energy in its upcoming earnings disclosure. The company's earnings per share (EPS) are projected to be $1.03, reflecting a 7.29% increase from the same quarter last year. Our most recent consensus estimate is calling for quarterly revenue of $7.33 billion, up 20.82% from the year-ago period.
Regarding the entire year, the Zacks Consensus Estimates forecast earnings of $3.68 per share and revenue of $28.95 billion, indicating changes of +7.29% and +16.96%, respectively, compared to the previous year.
Any recent changes to analyst estimates for NextEra Energy should also be noted by investors. These revisions help to show the ever-changing nature of near-term business trends. As a result, we can interpret positive estimate revisions as a good sign for the business outlook.
Our research reveals that these estimate alterations are directly linked with the stock price performance in the near future. We developed the Zacks Rank to capitalize on this phenomenon. Our system takes these estimate changes into account and delivers a clear, actionable rating model.
The Zacks Rank system, stretching from #1 (Strong Buy) to #5 (Strong Sell), has a noteworthy track record of outperforming, validated by third-party audits, with stocks rated #1 producing an average annual return of +25% since the year 1988. Over the last 30 days, the Zacks Consensus EPS estimate has witnessed a 0.03% increase. NextEra Energy is holding a Zacks Rank of #3 (Hold) right now.
In the context of valuation, NextEra Energy is at present trading with a Forward P/E ratio of 19.86. Its industry sports an average Forward P/E of 17.94, so one might conclude that NextEra Energy is trading at a premium comparatively.
One should further note that NEE currently holds a PEG ratio of 2.57. This popular metric is similar to the widely-known P/E ratio, with the difference being that the PEG ratio also takes into account the company's expected earnings growth rate. The Utility - Electric Power was holding an average PEG ratio of 2.57 at yesterday's closing price.
The Utility - Electric Power industry is part of the Utilities sector. With its current Zacks Industry Rank of 79, this industry ranks in the top 32% of all industries, numbering over 250.
The Zacks Industry Rank gauges the strength of our industry groups by measuring the average Zacks Rank of the individual stocks within the groups. Our research shows that the top 50% rated industries outperform the bottom half by a factor of 2 to 1.
Make sure to utilize Zacks.com to follow all of these stock-moving metrics, and more, in the coming trading sessions.
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NextEra Energy, Inc. (NEE): Free Stock Analysis ReportThis article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).
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