StockNews.com Downgrades NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) to Hold

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded shares of NRG Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price target for the company from $93.00 to $113.00 in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $86.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $134.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, NRG Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $123.29.

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NRG Energy Stock Performance

NYSE NRG traded down $3.12 during trading on Friday, hitting $88.02. 4,669,265 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,022,241. NRG Energy has a 12-month low of $59.50 and a 12-month high of $117.26. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.11, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.13. 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 business has a 50 day moving average of $102.48 and a 200-day moving average of $94.05.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other NRG Energy news, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 60,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.41, for a total transaction of $5,484,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 64,448 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,891,191.68. This trade represents a 48.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Bruce Chung sold 20,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, January 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.63, for a total value of $1,952,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,454 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,780,794.02. This represents a 22.36 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NRG Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NRG. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its position in NRG Energy by 1,010.1% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,557,350 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $140,504,000 after buying an additional 1,417,057 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its position in NRG Energy by 32,962.3% during the third quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,052,705 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $95,901,000 after buying an additional 1,049,521 shares during the period. Boston Partners purchased a new position in shares of NRG Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $94,346,000. Appaloosa LP raised its position in shares of NRG Energy by 81.5% in the 4th quarter. Appaloosa LP now owns 1,815,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $163,749,000 after purchasing an additional 815,180 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teacher Retirement System of Texas raised its position in shares of NRG Energy by 350.4% in the 4th quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 904,265 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $81,583,000 after purchasing an additional 703,481 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.72% of the company's stock.

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.