Woodline Partners LP Makes New Investment in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)

Woodline Partners LP bought a new stake in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 12,165 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,098,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of NRG. Boston Partners acquired a new stake in NRG Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $94,346,000. Appaloosa LP boosted its position in NRG Energy by 81.5% during the 4th quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 1,815,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $163,749,000 after purchasing an additional 815,180 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in NRG Energy by 350.4% during the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 904,265 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $81,583,000 after buying an additional 703,481 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in NRG Energy in the fourth quarter worth $61,679,000. Finally, Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC bought a new stake in NRG Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $54,881,000. 97.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NRG Energy Stock Down 1.1%

NRG Energy stock traded down $1.73 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $154.33. 3,948,596 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,023,446. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.11 and a 1-year high of $161.78. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $115.75 and a two-hundred day moving average of $104.64. The stock has a market cap of $30.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.78, a P/E/G ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, May 12th. The utilities provider reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.72 by $1.90. NRG Energy had a return on equity of 48.96% and a net margin of 3.43%. The business had revenue of $8.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $8.28 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.31 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 1st were given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, May 1st. NRG Energy's dividend payout ratio is 28.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on NRG. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price 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. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on NRG Energy from $86.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $138.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets reiterated a "market perform" rating and set a $167.00 price objective (up from $115.00) on shares of NRG Energy in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $140.75.

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.