NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) Price Target Raised to $132.00 at Jefferies Financial Group

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) had its price target upped by Jefferies Financial Group from $113.00 to $132.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. Jefferies Financial Group currently has a buy rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $86.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Guggenheim increased their price target on NRG Energy from $134.00 to $145.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Evercore ISI upgraded NRG Energy from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $74.00 to $126.00 in a research note on Tuesday, January 21st. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded NRG Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $126.38.

NRG Energy Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:NRG opened at $116.16 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $98.16 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $97.94. NRG Energy has a 12-month low of $65.11 and a 12-month high of $117.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $23.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.19, a PEG ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.00.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 1st will be issued a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, May 1st. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. NRG Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 35.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NRG Energy

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NRG. Banco Santander S.A. increased its position in NRG Energy by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 2,828,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $255,142,000 after buying an additional 7,500 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 16.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,282,672 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $205,943,000 after acquiring an additional 316,445 shares in the last quarter. 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 valued at $163,749,000 after purchasing an additional 815,180 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in NRG Energy by 1,010.1% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,557,350 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $140,504,000 after purchasing an additional 1,417,057 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in NRG Energy by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,414,186 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $127,614,000 after purchasing an additional 56,944 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.