American Century Companies Inc. Lowers Stock Position in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

American Century Companies Inc. lessened its holdings in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 19.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 149,444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 35,950 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned about 0.07% of NRG Energy worth $14,266,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT purchased a new stake in shares of NRG Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. Key Financial Inc purchased a new stake in NRG Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Evermay Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in NRG Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in NRG Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $53,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. lifted its position in NRG Energy by 44.0% during the first quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 655 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently commented on NRG. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $165.00 to $200.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Melius Research began coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $308.00 target price for the company. Melius began coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $308.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen cut shares of NRG Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $113.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $186.92.

Insider Buying and Selling at NRG Energy

In other news, Director Kevin Howell sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the director owned 55,427 shares in the company, valued at $8,563,471.50. This represents a 47.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

NRG Energy Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NRG Energy stock opened at $144.76 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.99. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $76.13 and a 12-month high of $175.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 65.50, a PEG ratio of 1.18 and a beta of 1.14. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $154.75 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $129.77.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.68 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by ($0.04). NRG Energy had a net margin of 1.78% and a return on equity of 88.22%. The company had revenue of $6.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.63 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $3.37 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 EPS for the current year.

NRG Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 1st were paid a $0.44 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 1st. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. NRG Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 79.64%.

NRG Energy 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.