NextEra Energy, Inc. (NEE) Stock Forecasts

Summary

The first quarter is in the books. The S&P 500, which was higher in January, slumped in February and March and is down about 4.9% for the year to date. The first quarter typically is positive for stocks, as the average gain for the period since 1980 has been 2.1%. Historically, stock have risen 65% of the time in 1Q. While the first quarter was forgettable, that doesn’t mean the full year will be a wipe out. Over the period back to 1980, there have been 15 negative first quarters and stocks have declined an average 6.3%. But in more than half of those years, stocks finished with positive annual returns. In fact, the average gain for those eight recovery years was 14.4%. April historically is the second-best month of the year for stocks. The average gain for the S&P 500 in April since 1980 is 1.6%. We note that market returns in April have exceeded 5% on eight occasions since 1980, including a 9.4% gain in 2009 as the market was beginning to recover from the financial crisis of 2007-2009; a 12.7% surge in 2020 as the market started to recover from the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic; and a 5.1% gain in 2021 as COVID-19 vaccines were rolled out. There have been some clunkers, including 2002 (-6.1%), 2000 (-3.1%) and 1981 (-2.3%). Last year, stocks slumped 4.2% in April, the worst month of the year. April is a busy month, as companies report first-quarter results. This year, 1Q earn