Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Lowers Position in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

Key Points

• Assenagon Asset Management S.A. has reduced its holdings in NRG Energy, Inc. by 23.2%, selling 333,734 shares and owning approximately 0.57% of the company as of its latest SEC filing.
• Analyst ratings for NRG Energy show mixed sentiments, with price targets ranging from $185.00 to $308.00 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• The company recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.44 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 1.1%.

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. cut its stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Free Report) by 23.2% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,106,903 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 333,734 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. owned approximately 0.57% of NRG Energy worth $177,746,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of NRG. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in NRG Energy by 41.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,187 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $468,000 after acquiring an additional 1,528 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in NRG Energy by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 18,876 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,703,000 after acquiring an additional 820 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in NRG Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,098,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 17.5% during the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,223,591 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $110,392,000 after buying an additional 182,438 shares during the period. Finally, Vise Technologies Inc. raised its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 178.8% during the 4th quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 7,366 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $665,000 after buying an additional 4,724 shares during the period. 97.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NRG Energy Price Performance

NYSE NRG traded up $6.78 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $171.14. The stock had a trading volume of 1,878,059 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,093,859. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.99, a current ratio of 0.93 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The firm's 50 day moving average is $154.44 and its 200 day moving average is $136.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $33.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 77.44, a PEG ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.17. NRG Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $79.57 and a twelve month high of $175.96.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.72 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $6.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.63 billion. NRG Energy had a net margin of 1.78% and a return on equity of 88.22%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $3.37 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NRG Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 1st were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. NRG Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 79.64%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

NRG has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Scotiabank initiated coverage on NRG Energy in a research note on Monday. They set a "sector outperform" rating and a $212.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded NRG Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 9th. Barclays upped their target price on NRG Energy from $197.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Raymond James Financial initiated coverage on NRG Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $195.00 target price for the company. Finally, Melius Research initiated coverage on NRG Energy in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $308.00 target price for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, NRG Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $188.85.

Insider Transactions at NRG Energy

In other NRG Energy news, VP Dak Liyanearachchi sold 10,672 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total value of $1,654,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 48,571 shares in the company, valued at $7,528,505. This represents a 18.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.