NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) Stock Rating Upgraded by The Goldman Sachs Group

Key Points

• The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded NRG Energy to a strong-buy, while analyst consensus remains a Moderate Buy with a $196.33 average price target.
• NRG reported quarterly EPS of $1.04 (missing estimates by $0.15) but revenue rose 13.7% to $7.75B and beat expectations; the stock is trading around $154.61, down roughly 3.6%.
• Significant insider selling has occurred recently — including sales by the CFO and a VP — totaling 172,556 shares (about $27.55M) in the past 90 days.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) was upgraded by The Goldman Sachs Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on NRG. Zacks Research upgraded NRG Energy from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, February 23rd. UBS Group began coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $211.00 target price on the stock. Evercore assumed coverage on NRG Energy in a research note on Wednesday, February 25th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $215.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on NRG Energy from $202.00 to $206.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lowered their target price on NRG Energy from $198.00 to $181.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $196.33.

NRG Energy Stock Down 3.6%

Shares of NYSE:NRG opened at $154.61 on Friday. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $159.84 and its 200-day simple moving average is $161.43. The company has a quick ratio of 1.58, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.92. The company has a market capitalization of $33.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.24 and a beta of 1.26. NRG Energy has a 52-week low of $79.57 and a 52-week high of $189.96.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $7.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.68 billion. NRG Energy had a return on equity of 109.48% and a net margin of 2.81%.The firm's revenue was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.56 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that NRG Energy will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NRG Energy news, CFO Bruce Chung sold 12,383 shares of NRG Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.56, for a total transaction of $1,938,682.48. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 79,147 shares of the company's stock, valued at $12,391,254.32. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 45,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.76, for a total value of $7,144,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 63,920 shares in the company, valued at $10,147,939.20. This represents a 41.31% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 172,556 shares of company stock worth $27,550,446. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of NRG Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings 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 buying an additional 1,528 shares in the last quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new position in shares of NRG Energy in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $323,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its holdings in NRG Energy by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 20,257 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,934,000 after purchasing an additional 1,381 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP boosted its position in NRG Energy by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 17,114 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,634,000 after purchasing an additional 4,949 shares during the period. Finally, Moors & Cabot Inc. acquired a new position in NRG Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $207,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.72% of the company's stock.

NRG Energy Company Profile

NRG Energy NYSE: NRG is a U.S.-based integrated power company headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company develops, owns and operates a diversified portfolio of power generation assets and participates in wholesale and retail energy markets. NRG supplies electricity to utilities, commercial and industrial customers, and retail consumers, while also providing energy-related products and services designed to manage consumption and support reliability.

NRG's generation mix includes conventional thermal plants as well as renewable and distributed energy resources.

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