NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) Stock Holdings Boosted by LPL Financial LLC

LPL Financial LLC boosted its stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Free Report) by 9.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 241,596 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 20,557 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.12% of NRG Energy worth $23,063,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in NRG Energy by 41.8% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,187 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $468,000 after purchasing an additional 1,528 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC raised its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 64.9% in 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 during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 10.1% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 241,786 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $21,814,000 after purchasing an additional 22,133 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in NRG Energy by 41.9% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 335,825 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $30,298,000 after purchasing an additional 99,091 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Huntington National Bank increased its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 28.3% during the fourth quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 662 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $60,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the period. 97.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

NRG Energy Price Performance

Shares of NRG stock traded down $23.29 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $148.67. The stock had a trading volume of 9,528,437 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,257,577. The company has a market cap of $29.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.61. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $71.90 and a 12-month high of $175.96. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $155.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.17.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.72 by ($0.04). NRG Energy had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 73.78%. The business had revenue of $6.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.63 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.37 EPS. NRG Energy's revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current year.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.2%. NRG Energy's payout ratio is currently 28.39%.

Insider Activity

In other NRG Energy news, Director Kevin Howell sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $154.50, for a total transaction of $7,725,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 55,427 shares in the company, valued at $8,563,471.50. This represents a 47.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on NRG. Wall Street Zen downgraded NRG Energy from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Citigroup increased their price objective on NRG Energy from $133.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They issued a "strong-buy" rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $167.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $162.10.

NRG Energy 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.