NextEra Energy NEE recently announced that the board of directors has approved a 10% increase in the quarterly dividend rate. Notably, the revised amount will be 38.5 cents. The company’s new annualized dividend rate is $1.54 and the current dividend yield is 1.85%, better than the Zacks S&P 500 composite’s 1.4%.NextEra’s management has been increasing the dividend rate over the past few years. The current annual dividend growth rate is better than its expected long-term earnings growth rate of 6-8% of a 2021 base. At least till 2022, management aims to upwardly revise the dividend rate by 10% from a 2020 base.Can NextEra Sustain Dividend Hikes?NextEra Energy’s capital investment plan, natural gas pipeline projects, robust renewable backlog, addition of renewable generation assets and accretive acquisitions continue to boost its cash flow generation capacity. Management of the company utilizes the cash flow to increase shareholders’ value through share buyback and payment of dividend.NextEra Energy has plans to invest in the range of $50-$55 billion in different projects during the 2019-2022 period. These investments will be directed at modernizing and strengthening the existing infrastructure of the company, enabling it to serve the expanding customer base more effectively. These investments are also helping the company to produce more electricity from clean sources and lower carbon emissions from the production process.NextEra Energy has undertaken initiatives to enhance financial strength and improve the core business. Notably, ongoing increase in the customer base and its steady performance pave the way for further increase in the annual dividend rate.Other Utilities Sharing ProfitsNextEra Energy is not the only utility company that has decided to share more profits with shareholders. The board of directors of WEC Energy WEC, Hawaiian Electric Industries HE and NiSource NI approved hikes of 7.1%, 3% and 5%, respectively. Consistent performance and dividend paying capability make the utilities a bond substitute.Zacks RankNextEra currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.Price MovementIn the past six months, NextEra’s shares have outperformed the industry it belongs to.The Hottest Tech Mega-Trend of AllLast year, it generated $24 billion in global revenues. By 2020, it's predicted to blast through the roof to $77.6 billion. Famed investor Mark Cuban says it will produce "the world's first trillionaires," but that should still leave plenty of money for regular investors who make the right trades early.See Zacks' 3 Best Stocks to Play This Trend >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report WEC Energy Group, Inc. (WEC): Free Stock Analysis Report NiSource, Inc (NI): Free Stock Analysis Report Hawaiian Electric Industries, Inc. (HE): Free Stock Analysis Report NextEra Energy, Inc. (NEE): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research