NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) Coverage Initiated at Evercore

Stock analysts at Evercore started coverage on shares of NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Wednesday, Marketbeat reports. The firm set an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock. Evercore’s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 18.42% from the company’s current price.

NRG has been the subject of several other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $198.00 to $181.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $153.00 target price on NRG Energy in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on NRG Energy from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $211.00 target price on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $190.67.

NRG Energy Stock Performance

NYSE NRG opened at $181.55 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.92, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The company has a market cap of $38.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 46.08 and a beta of 1.27. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $158.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $160.89. NRG Energy has a 1-year low of $79.57 and a 1-year high of $189.96.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.19 by ($0.15). NRG Energy had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 109.48%. The business had revenue of $7.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.56 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that NRG Energy will post 6.36 EPS for the current year.

NRG Energy announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 6th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the utilities provider to reacquire up to 9.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at NRG Energy

In related news, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the vice president directly owned 63,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,147,939.20. This trade represents a 41.31% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Bruce Chung sold 12,383 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.56, for a total transaction of $1,938,682.48. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 79,147 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $12,391,254.32. This trade represents a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders sold 172,556 shares of company stock valued at $27,550,446 over the last three months. 0.86% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of NRG Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Aviva PLC grew its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 9.7% in the 2nd quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 155,392 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $24,953,000 after purchasing an additional 13,757 shares during the last quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 122.8% during the third quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 295,471 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $47,852,000 after purchasing an additional 162,874 shares during the period. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. grew its position in NRG Energy by 58.1% in the 3rd quarter. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. now owns 19,992 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,238,000 after buying an additional 7,344 shares during the last quarter. Border to Coast Pensions Partnership Ltd acquired a new position in NRG Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at $27,003,000. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in NRG Energy by 68.2% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 251,366 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,364,000 after buying an additional 101,922 shares during the last quarter. 97.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.