Core Viewpoint - NextEra Energy (NEE) is expected to report improved earnings for the second quarter of 2024, despite a projected decline in revenues compared to the previous year [4][12]. Financial Performance - The Zacks Consensus Estimate for NEE's second-quarter revenues is $7.27 billion, indicating a 1.3% decline from the year-ago figure [1]. - The consensus estimate for earnings is pegged at 93 cents per share, reflecting a year-over-year growth of 5.7% [12]. - NEE's earnings have beaten the Zacks Consensus Estimates in the trailing four quarters, with an average surprise of 8.8% [13]. Earnings Expectations - NEE has an Earnings ESP of +1.44%, suggesting a favorable outlook for earnings performance [5]. - The earnings estimate has increased by 2.2% in the past 60 days, indicating positive sentiment [12]. - The company is expected to see annual earnings per share growth in the range of 6-8% due to rising demand from various sectors [16]. Market Position and Valuation - NEE is currently valued at a forward 12-month P/E multiple of 20.24, which is higher than the industry average of 13.63 [8]. - Competitors such as The Southern Company, PG&E, and American Electric Power are trading at lower forward P/E multiples of 19.54, 12.71, and 16.12, respectively [9]. Growth Drivers - The company is benefiting from improving economic conditions in Florida, leading to new customer additions and increased demand for services [10][15]. - NEE's Energy Resources unit is effectively meeting rising commercial and industrial customer demand through clean energy projects, with over 21 GW in the backlog of signed contracts [6][18]. - Strategic investments in clean energy production and partnerships, such as with Entergy Corporation for storage projects, are expected to enhance growth prospects [10]. Stock Performance - NEE's shares have gained 20.4% year to date, outperforming the industry's rally of 5.7% [17].

Core Viewpoint - NextEra Energy, Inc. (NEE) has upgraded its stock rating from HOLD to BUY due to strong Q1 earnings, positive economic indicators, and an improved interest rate outlook [3][9]. Financial Performance - NEE reported Q1 earnings with an EPS that exceeded market consensus by $0.11 per share [3]. - Management provided full-year earnings guidance of $3.23 to $3.43 per share, with expectations for operating cash flow growth to match or exceed EPS growth [3][4]. - Anticipated annual dividend growth of approximately 10% through at least 2026 [4]. Economic and Market Context - Florida's economy is performing well, contributing to strong customer growth for NEE's utility subsidiary, Florida Power & Light, which added about 100,000 customers in Q1 2024 [4][5]. - NEE's renewable energy subsidiary has expanded its backlog of projects from 18,735 MW at year-end 2023 to 21,500 MW, indicating robust growth potential [5]. Interest Rate Outlook - The interest rate outlook has improved, with a significant probability of at least two rate cuts by the end of the year, which could positively impact NEE's valuation [6][9]. - Current 10-year treasury rates have decreased from around 4.7% to approximately 4.2%, which may enhance NEE's stock price attractiveness compared to treasury bonds [6]. Valuation Metrics - NEE's P/E ratio (TTM) stands at 21.82, which is 25.57% higher than the sector median of 17.37, indicating a premium valuation [8][10]. - The P/E ratio is slightly below its 5-year average, suggesting some valuation compression despite the premium [8][10].

Core Insights - Zacks Premium provides various tools for investors to confidently navigate the stock market and identify investment opportunities [1] Zacks Style Scores - The Zacks Style Scores categorize stocks into four types: Growth Score, Value Score, Momentum Score, and VGM Score [2][3] - Each stock is rated from A to F based on its value, growth, and momentum characteristics, with higher scores indicating a better chance of outperforming the market [4] Value Investing - Value investors seek undervalued stocks using financial ratios such as P/E, PEG, Price/Sales, and Price/Cash Flow, with the Value Style Score highlighting the most attractive options [5] Growth Investing - The Growth Style Score focuses on a company's financial strength and future outlook, analyzing projected and historical earnings, sales, and cash flow to identify stocks with sustainable growth potential [15][22] Momentum Investing - The Momentum Style Score helps investors capitalize on price trends, utilizing metrics like one-week price changes and monthly earnings estimate changes to identify optimal entry points [16] Zacks Rank - The Zacks Rank is a proprietary model that uses earnings estimate revisions to simplify the process of building a successful investment portfolio [7] - Stocks rated 1 (Strong Buy) have historically produced an average annual return of +25.41% since 1988, significantly outperforming the S&P 500 [17] Stock Example: NextEra Energy (NEE) - NextEra Energy (NEE) holds a 3 (Hold) rating on the Zacks Rank and has a VGM Score of B, indicating potential for growth [11] - For fiscal 2024, NEE's earnings estimate has been revised upwards to $3.40 per share, with an average earnings surprise of 8.8% [12] - NEE is positioned as a strong candidate for growth investors, with a projected year-over-year earnings growth of 7.3% for the current fiscal year [22][23] - The company operates in the generation, transmission, distribution, and sale of electric energy, serving nearly 10 million people across 40 states in the U.S. and four provinces in Canada [21]

With a fair valuation and solid execution by NextEra's management team, NEE's technical situation is generally attractive. Notice in the chart below that shares have rallied through the key $70 mark that I have been discussing over the past year with this stock. Now, about that point of polarity, the next layer of potential selling pressure likely comes into play in the $80 to $82 range – that's the high from last quarter and where the bulls and bears battled from late 2022 through the middle part of last y ...

The utility sector is not exactly known for being a hot performer, but that didn't stop NextEra Energy (NEE -6.62%) from beating the S&P 500 index in the first six months of 2024. This impressive showing, however, needs to be taken with a grain of salt. Yes, NextEra Energy is a well-run utility with a fast-growing business. But it should only be bought by a certain type of investor. In the first six months of 2024, NextEra Energy's stock price gained roughly 16.5%. By comparison, the S&P 500 rose a slightly ...

As the Bloomberg quote above showed, the company has clean energy and highly favorable demand markets. The company operates through two businesses: Florida Power & Light ("FPL"), which is the largest rate-regulated utility in the United States, and Energy Resources, the global leader in renewable energy and storage. NextEra Energy is powered by two industry-leading companies, strengthened by NextEra Energy FPL isn't just large, according to NEE, but it also has average electricity bills that are 37% below t ...

We have found that the best way to discover great value opportunities is to pair a strong Zacks Rank with a great grade in the Value category of our Style Scores system. The Zacks Rank favors stocks with strong earnings estimate revision trends, and our Style Scores highlight companies with specific traits. Value investors analyze a variety of traditional, tried-and-true metrics to help find companies that they believe are undervalued at their current share price levels. FE currently has a forward P/E ratio ...

Recession-proof utility stocks have always been stable dividend payers, making them popular long-term investments. But new exponential demand driven by artificial intelligence transforms these Wall Street wallflowers into high-growth AI plays. According to Goldman Sachs Research analysts, AI is set to drive a 160% increase in data center power demand. With interest rates potentially lowering this year, now is an opportune time to power up portfolios with utilities. These stocks carry interest rate risk that ...

Many dividend stocks enjoyed even stronger first-half returns, including NextEra Energy (NEE 1.74%), Targa Resources (TRGP 1.08%), and ExxonMobil (XOM 0.02%). While they'll likely face similar second-half headwinds as the broader market, they stand out to a few Fool.com contributors because they could deliver an encore performance in the second half. And yet there's something unique about NextEra Energy that will still attract investors: dividend growth. Over the past decade, the company's dividend growth h ...

In the latest trading session, NextEra Energy (NEE) closed at $72.90, marking a +1.08% move from the previous day. The stock exceeded the S&P 500, which registered a gain of 1.02% for the day. Meanwhile, the Dow experienced a rise of 1.09%, and the technology-dominated Nasdaq saw an increase of 1.18%. Analysts and investors alike will be keeping a close eye on the performance of NextEra Energy in its upcoming earnings disclosure. On that day, NextEra Energy is projected to report earnings of $0.92 per share ...