Brown Advisory Inc. Trims Stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)

Brown Advisory Inc. cut its position in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 7.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,547 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 214 shares during the period. Brown Advisory Inc.’s holdings in NRG Energy were worth $243,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of NRG. Brighton Jones LLC grew its stake in NRG Energy by 41.8% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,187 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $468,000 after acquiring an additional 1,528 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in NRG Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $155,000. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its stake in NRG Energy by 5.9% in the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 2,619 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $236,000 after buying an additional 146 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its stake in NRG Energy by 37.6% in the 4th quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 43,650 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,938,000 after buying an additional 11,920 shares during the period. Finally, Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its position in NRG Energy by 33.4% during the 4th quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,370 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $394,000 after purchasing an additional 1,094 shares during the period. 97.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of NRG Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, June 27th. Guggenheim lifted their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $138.00 to $173.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Raymond James Financial assumed coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Friday, June 13th. They set a “strong-buy” rating and a $195.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Friday, April 4th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $129.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $151.80.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other NRG Energy news, Director Kevin Howell sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.50, for a total value of $7,725,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 55,427 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,563,471.50. This represents a 47.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

NRG Energy Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NRG stock opened at $145.03 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $153.38 and its 200-day moving average price is $118.93. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.61. The stock has a market cap of $28.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.39, a PEG ratio of 1.17 and a beta of 1.13. NRG Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.11 and a twelve month high of $168.57.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, May 12th. The utilities provider reported $2.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.72 by $1.90. NRG Energy had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 73.78%. The firm had revenue of $8.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $8.28 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.31 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current year.

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.