NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) Stock Price Expected to Rise, BMO Capital Markets Analyst Says

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) had its price objective increased by BMO Capital Markets from $94.00 to $100.00 in a report released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. BMO Capital Markets currently has a market perform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

NRG has been the subject of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Friday, September 13th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $82.00 price objective for the company. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $77.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. StockNews.com cut shares of NRG Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 2nd. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $84.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, NRG Energy has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.29.

NRG Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NRG opened at $95.48 on Tuesday. NRG Energy has a 52 week low of $45.29 and a 52 week high of $102.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.99, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $90.06 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $83.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were issued a dividend of $0.4075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.71%. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is 40.95%.

Insider Activity at NRG Energy

In related news, insider Rasesh M. Patel sold 102,603 shares of NRG Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.35, for a total transaction of $8,244,151.05. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 163,680 shares in the company, valued at $13,151,688. This trade represents a 38.53 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NRG Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 6.2% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,399,098 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $494,225,000 after purchasing an additional 313,478 shares in the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. raised its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 2,820,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $256,948,000 after purchasing an additional 24,834 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 2,663,441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $242,639,000 after purchasing an additional 182,481 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 65.8% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,596,684 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $124,318,000 after purchasing an additional 633,765 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec raised its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 52.2% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 1,330,706 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $121,227,000 after purchasing an additional 456,573 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

About NRG Energy

NRG Energy, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy and home services company in the United States and Canada. It operates through Texas; East; West/Services/Other; Vivint Smart Home; and Corporate Activities segments. The company produces and sells electricity generated using coal, oil, solar, and battery storage; natural gas; and a cloud-based home platform, including hardware, software, sales, installation, customer service, technical support, and professional monitoring solutions.