FPL Group, Inc. (FPL)

FPL Group, Inc. was the holding company for Florida Power & Light, the largest electric utility in Florida, serving millions of customer accounts along the state's east coast and southern regions. It also owned a fast-growing competitive generation business, then called FPL Energy, which built and operated wind, solar, natural gas and nuclear plants across many US states and Canada.

The holding company was formed in the 1980s, and its shares traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker FPL. Through the 2000s its wholesale arm became one of the largest wind power owners in North America. A planned merger with Constellation Energy was announced in 2005 but abandoned in 2006. Florida Power & Light remained the core of the business, supplying a fast-growing population and running large nuclear plants at Turkey Point and St. Lucie.

By the end of the decade the competitive business, renamed NextEra Energy Resources in 2009, was a major part of the group and operated far beyond Florida. Management argued that a single Florida utility name no longer described the company, and shareholders approved changing the corporate name to NextEra Energy, Inc. on May 21, 2010. The new name came from the competitive subsidiary and was chosen to describe the combined company's national footprint and its emphasis on clean energy.

The ticker change followed a month later. Starting with trading on June 23, 2010, the common stock moved from FPL to NEE, and the related preferred and debt securities were re-labeled under NEE as well. Florida Power & Light kept its name as the regulated subsidiary. Investors holding FPL shares did not need to take any action, since the change affected only the name and symbol and not the shares themselves.

Under the NextEra name the company grew into one of the largest US utilities by market value and the world's largest generator of wind and solar power. In 2019 it bought Gulf Power in northwest Florida, which was later merged into Florida Power & Light. The NextEra Energy Partners vehicle, later renamed XPLR Infrastructure, was also created to hold some contracted clean energy assets.