Rasesh M. Patel Sells 102,603 Shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) Stock

NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) insider Rasesh M. Patel sold 102,603 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.35, for a total value of $8,244,151.05. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 163,680 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,151,688. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

NRG Energy Price Performance

Shares of NRG stock traded up $0.54 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $81.32. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,140,285 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,394,281. The company has a current ratio of 1.18, a quick ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.51. NRG Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $36.61 and a twelve month high of $87.58. The stock has a market cap of $16.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.52 and a beta of 1.10. The business has a fifty day moving average of $78.31 and a 200-day moving average of $75.85.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 8th. The utilities provider reported $3.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $1.82. NRG Energy had a return on equity of 43.69% and a net margin of 7.19%. The firm had revenue of $6.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.10 EPS. NRG Energy’s quarterly revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 4.45 EPS for the current year.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 1st were paid a $0.4075 dividend. This represents a $1.63 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, August 1st. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is 23.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NRG. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Friday. They set a “hold” rating and a $82.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $110.00 to $120.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, September 5th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $70.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Finally, StockNews.com cut NRG Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, September 2nd. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $73.75.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Banco Santander S.A. acquired a new position in shares of NRG Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $217,671,000. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC raised its holdings in NRG Energy by 253.2% in the 1st quarter. Capitolis Liquid Global Markets LLC now owns 1,766,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $119,541,000 after acquiring an additional 1,266,000 shares during the last quarter. Zimmer Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the 1st quarter worth $64,306,000. Fred Alger Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NRG Energy during the second quarter worth $53,773,000. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 65.8% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,596,684 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $124,318,000 after purchasing an additional 633,765 shares during the last quarter. 97.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.