NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) Price Target Lowered to $159.00 at Morgan Stanley

Key Points

• Morgan Stanley lowered NRG Energy’s price target to $159 from $162 while maintaining an “equal weight” rating; the new target implies roughly 52% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive, with NRG carrying a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $198.21.
• NRG’s latest quarterly results missed earnings expectations, reporting $1.49 in EPS versus the $1.69 consensus, although revenue rose 11% year over year to $7.48 billion.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) had its price target dropped by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $162.00 to $159.00 in a research note issued on Friday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an "equal weight" rating on the utilities provider's stock. Morgan Stanley's price objective would indicate a potential upside of 52.06% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Siebert Williams Shank initiated coverage on NRG Energy in a research report on Monday, July 6th. They set a "buy" rating and a $184.00 price objective on the stock. BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $214.00 target price on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Barclays raised their target price on NRG Energy from $200.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 28th. Williams Trading set a $184.00 price target on NRG Energy in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $203.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, NRG Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $198.21.

NRG Energy Price Performance

NRG traded down $1.67 on Friday, reaching $104.56. 1,021,851 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,690,080. The stock has a market cap of $22.06 billion, a PE ratio of 27.63 and a beta of 1.18. NRG Energy has a twelve month low of $103.85 and a twelve month high of $189.96. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $122.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $137.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.17, a current ratio of 0.97 and a quick ratio of 0.89.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.20). The business had revenue of $7.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.31 billion. NRG Energy had a net margin of 2.56% and a return on equity of 52.95%. The firm's revenue was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.73 EPS. NRG Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.900-9.900 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that NRG Energy will post 8.6 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CAO Gerald Alfred Spencer sold 1,580 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $120.93, for a total value of $191,069.40. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,213 shares in the company, valued at approximately $751,338.09. This represents a 20.27% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.43% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of NRG Energy

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Wellington Altus USA Inc. purchased a new stake in NRG Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. National Pension Service grew its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 13.9% in the second quarter. National Pension Service now owns 345,477 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $50,460,000 after buying an additional 42,196 shares in the last quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd grew its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 19.9% in the second quarter. WINTON GROUP Ltd now owns 2,100 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $307,000 after buying an additional 349 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC raised its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 52.7% in the 2nd quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 7,721 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,128,000 after buying an additional 2,664 shares during the period. Finally, Maven Securities LTD acquired a new position in NRG Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $4,033,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.72% of the company's stock.

NRG Energy Company Profile

NRG Energy, Inc is a North American energy and home services company headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company operates through power generation and energy retail businesses, supplying electricity and related services to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

NRG owns and operates a diverse portfolio of power-generation assets, including natural gas, coal, nuclear and renewable facilities. It also sells electricity and natural gas through brands such as Reliant, Direct Energy and Green Mountain Energy, with retail operations serving customers in competitive energy markets across the United States and Canada.

In addition to its energy operations, NRG provides smart-home, security and related connected-home services through its Vivint business.

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