Gateway Investment Advisers LLC Purchases New Shares in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

Key Points

• Gateway Investment Advisers LLC invested approximately $789,000 in NRG Energy, acquiring 4,916 shares in the latest quarter.
• NRG Energy reported quarterly earnings of $1.68 EPS, below analysts' consensus of $1.72, with revenues of $6.74 billion, exceeding estimates.
• The company's recent quarterly dividend was announced at $0.44 per share, translating to a 1.1% dividend yield and a payout ratio of 79.64%.

Gateway Investment Advisers LLC bought a new stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 4,916 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $789,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. GW&K Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 23.8% in the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 672 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 99.2% in the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 413,911 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $39,512,000 after acquiring an additional 206,096 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC lifted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 54.4% in the first quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 6,215 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $593,000 after acquiring an additional 2,190 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its stake in NRG Energy by 2.7% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 23,728 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,265,000 after purchasing an additional 630 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its stake in NRG Energy by 28.4% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 16,815 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,605,000 after purchasing an additional 3,721 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.72% of the company's stock.

NRG Energy Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of NRG Energy stock traded down $0.32 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $163.87. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,195,804 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,007,153. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.99. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $79.57 and a 1-year high of $175.96. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $154.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $135.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 74.15, a PEG ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.17.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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). NRG Energy had a return on equity of 88.22% and a net margin of 1.78%.The firm had revenue of $6.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.63 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $3.37 earnings per share. NRG Energy's revenue was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current year.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. NRG Energy's payout ratio is presently 79.64%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on NRG Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "strong-buy" rating and a $195.00 target price for the company. Barclays upped their target price on NRG Energy from $197.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Melius Research assumed coverage on NRG Energy in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $308.00 price target for the company. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on NRG Energy from $167.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on NRG Energy from $133.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $186.92.

Insider Activity at NRG Energy

In related news, VP Dak Liyanearachchi sold 10,672 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total transaction of $1,654,160.00. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 48,571 shares in the company, valued at $7,528,505. The trade was a 18.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.86% of the company's stock.

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.