Arvest Bank Trust Division Decreases Stake in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

Arvest Bank Trust Division trimmed its position in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 11.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 66,858 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 8,794 shares during the quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division’s holdings in NRG Energy were worth $10,828,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of NRG. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new position in NRG Energy in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust acquired a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp increased its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 90.4% in the 3rd quarter. Atlantic Union Bankshares Corp now owns 179 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in NRG Energy during the second quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in NRG Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Brian Curci sold 60,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.71, for a total value of $9,796,391.80. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 93,089 shares in the company, valued at $15,053,422.19. This trade represents a 39.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 45,000 shares of NRG Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.76, for a total value of $7,144,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 63,920 shares in the company, valued at $10,147,939.20. This represents a 41.31% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 172,556 shares of company stock worth $27,550,446. 0.61% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on NRG. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $198.00 to $181.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $202.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research cut NRG Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, one has issued a Hold rating and two have assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $184.91.

NRG Energy Stock Up 6.7%

NRG Energy stock opened at $172.60 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $156.21 and a two-hundred day moving average of $159.93. NRG Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $79.57 and a twelve month high of $180.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $37.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.80 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.45.

NRG Energy announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 6th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the utilities provider to repurchase up to 9.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

NRG Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 2nd will be given a $0.475 dividend. This is a positive change from NRG Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date is Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.1%. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is 28.40%.

NRG Energy Profile

NRG Energy (NYSE: NRG) is a U.S.-based integrated power company headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company develops, owns and operates a diversified portfolio of power generation assets and participates in wholesale and retail energy markets. NRG supplies electricity to utilities, commercial and industrial customers, and retail consumers, while also providing energy-related products and services designed to manage consumption and support reliability.

NRG’s generation mix includes conventional thermal plants as well as renewable and distributed energy resources.