NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) Receives $199.21 Consensus Price Target from Analysts

NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) has earned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the sixteen brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $199.2143.

A number of brokerages have weighed in on NRG. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Monday, December 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $198.00 target price on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Monday, October 20th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “underperform” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised NRG Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th.

NRG Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NRG Energy stock opened at $160.89 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.45, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.05. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $165.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $159.90. NRG Energy has a 1 year low of $79.57 and a 1 year high of $180.54. The firm has a market cap of $30.83 billion, a PE ratio of 24.05 and a beta of 1.26.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.85. NRG Energy had a return on equity of 103.57% and a net margin of 4.84%.The business had revenue of $7.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.53 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.90 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts forecast that NRG Energy will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 3rd were paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 3rd. NRG Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.31%.

NRG Energy declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, November 6th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the utilities provider to buy up to 9.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Buying and Selling at NRG Energy

In related news, VP Virginia Kinney sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.82, for a total value of $3,276,400.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 43,191 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,075,549.62. This trade represents a 31.65% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NRG Energy

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 41.8% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,187 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $468,000 after buying an additional 1,528 shares during the period. CW Advisors LLC raised its stake in NRG Energy by 16.4% during the 1st quarter. CW Advisors LLC now owns 4,525 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $434,000 after acquiring an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in NRG Energy by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 27,922 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,665,000 after acquiring an additional 563 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 54.0% in the first quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 3,904 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $373,000 after purchasing an additional 1,369 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jump Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 23.3% during the first quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 8,303 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $793,000 after purchasing an additional 1,569 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

NRG Energy Company Profile

NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG) is a U.S.-based integrated power company headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company develops, owns and operates a diversified portfolio of power generation assets and participates in wholesale and retail energy markets. NRG supplies electricity to utilities, commercial and industrial customers, and retail consumers, while also providing energy-related products and services designed to manage consumption and support reliability.

NRG’s generation mix includes conventional thermal plants as well as renewable and distributed energy resources.