NRG Energy, Inc. (NRG) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.44 on February 18th

NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, January 22nd,Wall Street Journal reports. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a dividend of 0.44 per share by the utilities provider on Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.59%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. This is an increase from NRG Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41.

NRG Energy has increased its dividend payment by an average of 7.8% annually over the last three years. NRG Energy has a payout ratio of 20.1% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect NRG Energy to earn $7.53 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.63 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 21.6%.

NRG Energy Stock Performance

NYSE NRG opened at $110.45 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.12 and a 200 day simple moving average of $88.23. NRG Energy has a 12-month low of $51.26 and a 12-month high of $115.38. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57. The company has a market cap of $22.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.75, a PEG ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.15.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 60,000 shares of NRG Energy stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.41, for a total value of $5,484,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 64,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,891,191.68. This trade represents a 48.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Bruce Chung sold 20,000 shares of NRG Energy stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.63, for a total value of $1,952,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,454 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,780,794.02. The trade was a 22.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

NRG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Citigroup raised their price objective on NRG Energy from $84.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on NRG Energy from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Evercore ISI upgraded NRG Energy from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $74.00 to $126.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded NRG Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $93.00 to $113.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Guggenheim lifted their target price on NRG Energy from $77.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, NRG Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $111.43.

NRG Energy Company Profile

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.