NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) Sets New 12-Month High – Here’s What Happened

Shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $103.14 and last traded at $102.21, with a volume of 1127150 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $98.89.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $84.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com downgraded shares of NRG Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 2nd. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $77.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of NRG Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $93.00 to $113.00 in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.71.

NRG Energy Stock Up 2.8 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $20.58 billion, a PE ratio of 25.70, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.10. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $91.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $83.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57.

NRG Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $0.4075 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.60%. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is currently 40.95%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 163,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,151,688. The trade was a 38.53 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NRG Energy

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,399,098 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $494,225,000 after purchasing an additional 313,478 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A. lifted its holdings in NRG Energy by 0.9% during 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 buying an additional 24,834 shares in the last quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. lifted its holdings in NRG Energy by 7.4% during 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 buying an additional 182,481 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in NRG Energy by 65.8% during 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 buying an additional 633,765 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec lifted its holdings in NRG Energy by 52.2% during 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 buying an additional 456,573 shares in the last quarter. 97.72% of the stock is 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.