Brokerages Set NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) Target Price at $111.43

Shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and five have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $111.43.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on NRG. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $84.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on NRG Energy from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. Evercore ISI raised shares of NRG Energy from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and boosted their target price for the stock from $74.00 to $126.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. 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, Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of NRG Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $93.00 to $113.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 26th.

Insider Buying and Selling at NRG Energy

In other news, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 60,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.41, for a total value of $5,484,600.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 64,448 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,891,191.68. The trade was a 48.21 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CFO Bruce Chung sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.63, for a total transaction of $1,952,600.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 69,454 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,780,794.02. This trade represents a 22.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.61% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NRG Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of NRG. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in shares of NRG Energy during the third quarter worth $26,000. Covestor Ltd grew its holdings 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 acquiring an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in NRG Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of NRG Energy in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $36,000. 97.72% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NRG Energy Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE NRG traded up $0.44 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $103.32. 1,430,297 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,217,954. The stock has a market cap of $20.93 billion, a PE ratio of 25.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.17. The company's fifty day moving average is $98.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $90.04. NRG Energy has a fifty-two week low of $51.26 and a fifty-two week high of $115.38.

NRG Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd will be given a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.70%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 3rd. This is a positive change from NRG Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. NRG Energy's dividend payout ratio is 40.95%.

NRG Energy Company 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.