Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Has $1.25 Million Position in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lessened its position in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Free Report) by 93.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,097 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 328,926 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC's holdings in NRG Energy were worth $1,246,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in NRG. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new position in NRG Energy in the third quarter valued at about $41,000. CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its stake in NRG Energy by 1,005.5% in the fourth quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 807 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 734 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in NRG Energy by 35.4% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 865 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 226 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new position in NRG Energy in the third quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in NRG Energy by 9.6% in the third quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,400 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $131,000 after buying an additional 297 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.72% of the company's stock.

NRG Energy Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:NRG traded up $1.13 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $72.62. 3,193,341 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,674,919. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.49. The company has a market cap of $15.59 billion, a P/E ratio of -67.87 and a beta of 1.13. NRG Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $30.52 and a one year high of $76.54. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $64.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $53.82.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $6.81 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.51 billion. NRG Energy had a positive return on equity of 44.03% and a negative net margin of 0.70%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 5.36 EPS for the current year.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.4075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. NRG Energy's payout ratio is presently -152.34%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on NRG shares. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on NRG Energy from $51.00 to $63.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 26th. Evercore ISI increased their price target on NRG Energy from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. StockNews.com upgraded NRG Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. TheStreet upgraded NRG Energy from a "c+" rating to a "b" rating in a report on Friday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on NRG Energy from $78.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $59.50.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other NRG Energy news, VP Rasesh M. Patel sold 49,092 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.59, for a total value of $3,072,668.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 356,962 shares in the company, valued at $22,342,251.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.61% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.