NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) Receives Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Analysts

NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) has earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $102.71.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on NRG shares. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on NRG Energy from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded NRG Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $93.00 to $113.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. StockNews.com lowered shares of NRG Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, September 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $84.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NRG Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NRG. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Covestor Ltd grew its stake in NRG Energy by 74.7% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in NRG Energy during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. First Horizon Advisors Inc. increased its position in NRG Energy by 76.1% in the second quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 442 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. Finally, Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in NRG Energy in the third quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.72% of the company's stock.

NRG Energy Stock Performance

NYSE NRG traded down $0.16 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $94.98. 1,432,026 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,196,734. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57. The company has a market cap of $19.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.30 and a beta of 1.12. NRG Energy has a 12-month low of $47.88 and a 12-month high of $103.14. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $92.91 and a 200 day moving average of $84.74.

NRG Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a dividend of $0.4075 per share. This represents a $1.63 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 1st. NRG Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.95%.

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.