The Strait of Hormuz crisis exposed the fragility of global energy markets and made the switch to green energy even more important.
Constellation Energy is America's largest green energy producer and nuclear operator.
NextEra Energy is another major green energy producer with a high-yielding dividend for a utility stock.
I don't know about you, but I haven't seen anywhere near as many headlines about the transition to green and renewable energy in the past few years as I used to. And, given how friendly the Trump administration is to the oil and gas industries, I wouldn't blame you for thinking the energy transition was dead.
But that couldn't be further from the truth. If anything, the current crisis around the Strait of Hormuz has only made the need for a move away from fossil fuels plain for everyone to see, especially for countries that rely on energy exports from the Persian Gulf.
Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »
The green energy transition is alive and well -- it's just less focused on wind and solar these days and much more open to nuclear power as a solution to our energy needs. Look no further than the goal President Trump's Department of Energy set to triple America's nuclear production by the middle of the century.
With that in mind, I want to look at two companies that have been working to bring about the green energy transition.
Image source: Getty Images.
Per the Nuclear Energy Institute, there are 94 nuclear reactors in operation across the United States.
Baltimore, Maryland's Constellation Energy (NASDAQ: CEG) operates 21 of them and is far and away America's largest nuclear energy producer.
Beyond that, Constellation is America's largest green energy producer, bar none. It does operate some oil and natural gas facilities, but it also runs 27 wind farms, two hydroelectric plants, and one of the country's largest solar plants.
Constellation's business is simple and straightforward: It generates and sells electricity to customers nationwide.
And, as of its latest earnings report for Q4 and full-year 2025, the company anticipates its base earnings per share (EPS) compound annual growth rate (CAGR) will come in at 20% through 2029.
The company also maintains a 9.1% net profit margin and a very healthy balance sheet with a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61.
Also of note, Constellation pays a dividend and has done since 2022. It yields 0.57% at current prices, and the company has raised it every year since 2022. And with a payout ratio of 20.96%, it has plenty of room to keep growing that dividend.
So, for a long-term play on the green energy transition, Constellation is a good bet. The yield might be low, but it has a lot of runway to grow its dividend.
Florida's NextEra Energy (NYSE: NEE) is a smaller company than Constellation but also a major green energy producer and nuclear operator.
It's engaged in wind, solar, natural gas, and nuclear projects across the entire United States except Utah and Alaska and a good chunk of Canada, namely Ontario, Quebec, Alberta, and Nova Scotia.
The company has four nuclear plants in operation, two in Florida and one each in New Hampshire and Wisconsin. There will be a fourth one come 2029, though.
Per an agreement with Google's parent company Alphabet, NextEra will be resurrecting Iowa's Duane Arnold Energy Center to provide power to Google's data centers in the area for the next 25 years.
NextEra had a great 2025 with its net income and EPS surging 10.3% and 9.5%, respectively, over 2024. The company has a net profit margin of 19.45%, and it pays a dividend that yields 2.49% at current prices with a somewhat high but healthy payout ratio of 68.67%.
The company has raised that dividend for 31 years consecutively, and it has grown at a rate of 10% annualized over the past five years.
With a high yield for a utility stock and a growth rate like that, NextEra makes a good candidate for a dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP). Consider it for another long-term green energy transition play.
Before you buy stock in NextEra Energy, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and NextEra Energy wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $555,526!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,156,403!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 968% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 191% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
See the 10 stocks »
*Stock Advisor returns as of April 11, 2026.
James Hires has positions in Alphabet. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Constellation Energy, and NextEra Energy. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.