Jennison Associates LLC Invests $27 Million in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)

Jennison Associates LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 282,815 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $26,998,000. Jennison Associates LLC owned approximately 0.14% of NRG Energy as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Key Financial Inc acquired a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the first quarter valued at about $30,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $41,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 64.9% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 521 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 205 shares in the last quarter. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $53,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in NRG Energy by 44.0% in the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 655 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.72% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on NRG. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $113.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, May 5th. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $138.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Citigroup reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $185.00 price target (up previously from $133.00) on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Thursday. Raymond James Financial began coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "strong-buy" rating and a $195.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays set a $197.00 price target on shares of NRG Energy and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $160.30.

Insider Transactions at NRG Energy

In other NRG Energy news, Director Kevin Howell sold 50,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.50, for a total value of $7,725,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 55,427 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,563,471.50. This trade represents a 47.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company's stock.

NRG Energy Price Performance

NRG Energy stock traded up $4.59 during trading on Friday, reaching $151.97. The company had a trading volume of 3,408,409 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,970,347. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $154.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $119.94. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.11 and a 1-year high of $168.57. The firm has a market capitalization of $29.71 billion, a PE ratio of 24.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.61, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.06.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The utilities provider reported $2.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by $1.90. NRG Energy had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 73.78%. The firm had revenue of $8.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.28 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.31 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NRG Energy Company Profile

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.