NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) Stock Moved Up to Buy by Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded NRG Energy from “hold” to “buy.” Overall, analysts have a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $173.44, though several recently lowered their targets.
• NRG reported quarterly EPS of $4.68, beating the $3.35 consensus, while revenue of $9.47 billion exceeded estimates and rose 24% year over year.
• Shares opened at $97.04, well below their 200-day moving average of $132.36; the stock’s 52-week range is $79.65 to $189.96.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) was upgraded by stock analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a note issued to investors on Saturday, Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on NRG Energy from $209.00 to $182.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of NRG Energy from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $204.00 to $163.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 27th. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $214.00 price objective on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce cut their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $173.00 to $159.00 and set an "outperformer" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $173.44.

NRG Energy Stock Down 1.0%

NRG opened at $97.04 on Friday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $100.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $132.36. NRG Energy has a 1-year low of $79.65 and a 1-year high of $189.96. The stock has a market cap of $20.38 billion, a PE ratio of 17.08 and a beta of 1.22. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.73.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 9th. The utilities provider reported $4.68 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.35 by $1.33. The company had revenue of $9.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.42 billion. NRG Energy had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 53.20%. The company's revenue was up 24.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.78 earnings per share. NRG Energy has set its FY 2027 guidance at 8.050-10.050 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 7.900-9.900 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that NRG Energy will post 8.88 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Gerald Alfred Spencer sold 1,580 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.93, for a total value of $191,069.40. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 6,213 shares in the company, valued at approximately $751,338.09. This trade represents a 20.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Company insiders own 0.43% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NRG Energy

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in NRG Energy by 3.0% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 2,523 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $369,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its position in NRG Energy by 1.0% in the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 8,138 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,189,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Aspen Grove Capital LLC increased its position in NRG Energy by 3.1% in the first quarter. Aspen Grove Capital LLC now owns 2,698 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $394,000 after buying an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Trust Co raised its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 3.8% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Trust Co now owns 2,765 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $264,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Finally, Chesley Taft & Associates LLC raised its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 1.5% in the second quarter. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC now owns 7,363 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,075,000 after buying an additional 110 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.72% of the company's stock.

About NRG Energy

NRG Energy, Inc. is an integrated energy company that produces and sells electricity and natural gas and provides home services. Its businesses serve residential, commercial and industrial customers, primarily in the United States and Canada. The company supplies retail electricity and natural gas through a range of plans and brands, while its power-generation operations help support electricity markets across its service areas. NRG also offers energy-management programs and related services for businesses and other large customers.

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