Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI Grows Stake in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

Key Points

• Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its stake in NRG Energy by 78.3% during the first quarter, owning 295,201 shares valued at approximately $28.18 million.
• NRG Energy reported quarterly earnings of $1.68 per share, missing analysts' expectations, although it saw a revenue increase to $6.74 billion.
• The recent quarterly dividend of $0.44 reflects an annualized yield of 1.2%, with a payout ratio currently at 79.64%.

Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its holdings in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Free Report) by 78.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 295,201 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 129,676 shares during the quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI owned 0.14% of NRG Energy worth $28,180,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NRG. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 468.4% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,757,735 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $454,173,000 after purchasing an additional 6,049,247 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 772.5% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 4,378,022 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $406,342,000 after purchasing an additional 3,876,235 shares in the last quarter. Boston Partners lifted its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 169.5% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,817,018 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $269,230,000 after purchasing an additional 1,771,829 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the first quarter valued at $93,075,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 289.1% during the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,023,168 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $97,672,000 after purchasing an additional 760,201 shares in the last quarter. 97.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

NRG Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE NRG traded up $7.14 during trading on Friday, hitting $165.06. The company had a trading volume of 2,278,123 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,954,335. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.23 and a 200 day simple moving average of $134.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.99, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.93. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $77.49 and a 12 month high of $175.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $31.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 74.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.17.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.72 by ($0.04). NRG Energy had a return on equity of 88.22% and a net margin of 1.78%.The company had revenue of $6.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.63 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $3.37 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, 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 was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. NRG Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 79.64%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Dak Liyanearachchi sold 10,672 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total transaction of $1,654,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 48,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,528,505. This trade represents a 18.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on NRG shares. Raymond James Financial started coverage on NRG Energy in a report on Friday, June 13th. They set a "strong-buy" rating and a $195.00 price target on the stock. Melius Research initiated coverage on NRG Energy in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $308.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on NRG Energy from $133.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded NRG Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on NRG Energy from $197.00 to $203.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $186.92.

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.