American Century Companies Inc. Boosts Stake in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 68.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 251,366 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 101,922 shares during the quarter. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of NRG Energy worth $40,364,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NRG. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 468.4% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 4,757,735 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $454,173,000 after buying an additional 6,049,247 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its position in NRG Energy by 772.5% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 4,378,022 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $406,342,000 after acquiring an additional 3,876,235 shares during the period. Boston Partners boosted its stake in NRG Energy by 169.5% during the first quarter. Boston Partners now owns 2,817,018 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $269,230,000 after acquiring an additional 1,771,829 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in NRG Energy in the first quarter worth about $93,075,000. Finally, Alliancebernstein L.P. increased its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 289.1% during the first quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 1,023,168 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $97,672,000 after purchasing an additional 760,201 shares in the last quarter. 97.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NRG Energy Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NRG stock opened at $168.57 on Friday. 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 $79.57 and a 12-month high of $180.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 76.28 and a beta of 1.16. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $167.22 and its 200 day moving average is $159.16.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.85. The business had revenue of $7.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.53 billion. NRG Energy had a net margin of 1.78% and a return on equity of 88.22%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.90 EPS. Research analysts expect that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current year.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 3rd were paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 3rd. NRG Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 26.31%.

NRG Energy announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, November 6th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the utilities provider to buy up to 9.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently weighed in on NRG shares. Melius began coverage on NRG Energy in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $308.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Thursday, November 20th. Barclays lifted their price target on NRG Energy from $197.00 to $203.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of NRG Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Melius Research initiated coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $308.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $198.31.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Dak Liyanearachchi sold 10,672 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total transaction of $1,654,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 48,571 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,528,505. The trade was a 18.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Virginia Kinney sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $163.82, for a total transaction of $3,276,400.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 43,191 shares in the company, valued at $7,075,549.62. The trade was a 31.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

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.