Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Cuts Stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd cut its holdings in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Free Report) by 25.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,407 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 6,324 shares during the quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd's holdings in NRG Energy were worth $1,757,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Key Financial Inc purchased a new stake in NRG Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $30,000. Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new stake in NRG Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $41,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in 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. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in NRG Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $53,000. Finally, Huntington National Bank grew its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 28.3% during the 4th quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 662 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $60,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.72% of the company's stock.

NRG Energy Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NRG traded down $1.39 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $156.58. The stock had a trading volume of 2,025,569 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,927,422. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.61, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 1.02. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.11 and a 1 year high of $168.57. The firm has a market cap of $30.61 billion, a PE ratio of 25.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.13. The stock's 50 day moving average is $154.71 and its 200 day moving average is $122.00.

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

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, August 1st will be paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 1st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.12%. NRG Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on NRG shares. Barclays set a $197.00 price objective on shares of NRG Energy and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, June 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on NRG Energy in a research note on Friday, April 4th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $129.00 price objective for the company. 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 target price on the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $185.00 price objective (up previously from $133.00) on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. 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 note on Wednesday, May 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $160.30.

Insider Activity at NRG Energy

In related news, Director Kevin Howell sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.50, for a total value of $7,725,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 55,427 shares of the company's stock, valued at $8,563,471.50. This represents a 47.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company's stock.

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.