CENTRAL TRUST Co Has $510,000 Stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)

CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Free Report) by 505.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,345 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,462 shares during the period. CENTRAL TRUST Co's holdings in NRG Energy were worth $510,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Banco Santander S.A. increased its position in NRG Energy by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 2,828,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $255,142,000 after buying an additional 7,500 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in NRG Energy by 16.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,282,672 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $205,943,000 after purchasing an additional 316,445 shares in the last quarter. Appaloosa LP boosted its stake in NRG Energy by 81.5% in the fourth quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 1,815,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $163,749,000 after purchasing an additional 815,180 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. raised its position in shares of NRG Energy by 4.2% during the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,414,186 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $127,614,000 after acquiring an additional 56,944 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prudential Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of NRG Energy by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 1,374,245 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $123,984,000 after acquiring an additional 41,094 shares during the last quarter. 97.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating and issued a $167.00 price objective (up previously from $115.00) on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. Guggenheim upped their price objective on NRG Energy from $138.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on NRG Energy in a research report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $195.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen cut NRG Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on NRG Energy from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $146.78.

Insider Buying and Selling 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 sale, the director now owns 55,427 shares of the company's stock, 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 can be accessed through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.86% of the company's stock.

NRG Energy Price Performance

NRG Energy stock traded down $0.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $152.13. 7,964,188 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,001,366. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $135.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $111.45. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.11 and a 12 month high of $162.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.61, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market cap of $29.74 billion, a PE ratio of 24.54, a PEG ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.13.

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

NRG Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 1st were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 1st. NRG Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 28.39%.

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.