NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Evercore

Evercore initiated coverage on shares of NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) in a report published on Wednesday. The firm issued an outperform rating and a $215.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price objective on NRG Energy from $198.00 to $181.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $153.00 target price on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $225.00 price target on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Monday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on NRG Energy from $202.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have assigned a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $190.67.

NRG Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NRG stock opened at $183.95 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.92, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.64. The firm has a market cap of $39.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 46.69 and a beta of 1.27. NRG Energy has a 52 week low of $79.57 and a 52 week high of $189.96. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $158.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $160.74.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.15). NRG Energy had a return on equity of 109.48% and a net margin of 2.81%.The company had revenue of $7.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.56 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast that NRG Energy will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current year.

NRG Energy announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, November 6th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the utilities provider to buy up to 9.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

NRG Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were issued a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. This is an increase from NRG Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is currently 28.40%.

Insider Activity at NRG Energy

In related news, CFO Bruce Chung sold 12,383 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.56, for a total transaction of $1,938,682.48. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 79,147 shares in the company, valued at $12,391,254.32. The trade was a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian Curci sold 46,976 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.84, for a total value of $7,461,667.84. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 46,113 shares in the company, valued at $7,324,588.92. This represents a 50.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 172,556 shares of company stock valued at $27,550,446. Company insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On NRG Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Quent Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NRG Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. MV Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in NRG Energy in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC bought a new position in NRG Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust purchased a new stake in NRG Energy during the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Core Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in NRG Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting NRG Energy

Here are the key news stories impacting NRG Energy this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Evercore starts coverage with an “outperform” rating and a $215 price target (roughly a mid‑teens upside from recent levels), which can drive demand from institutional investors and momentum buyers.
• Positive Sentiment: NRG reported a large revenue beat and set long‑term targets: management is guiding to ~14% annual EPS growth through 2030 and highlighted that the LS Power integration has outperformed, supporting upside to future earnings and growth expectations. MSN: NRG targets 14% annual EPS growth
• Positive Sentiment: Full‑year 2025 metrics were strong on an adjusted basis (Adjusted EPS, Adjusted EBITDA, and Free Cash Flow before Growth all solid) and management says they’ve materially increased generation capacity — fundamentals that support valuation and shareholder returns. BusinessWire: Full Year 2025 Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Zacks moved NRG from “strong sell” to “hold” — a modest improvement in sentiment but not a bullish endorsement; useful for reducing downside perception but unlikely to spark large inflows by itself. Zacks.com
• Neutral Sentiment: Company presentation, earnings slides and the full earnings‑call transcript were posted (useful for modelers and active traders to parse guidance and commodity/exposure details). Seeking Alpha: Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Some reports highlight that GAAP/Q4 EPS (~$1.03–$1.04) missed broader consensus figures cited by certain services (and GAAP net income was down), which creates headline risk and gave traders reason to pare positions despite the revenue/cash‑flow positives. MarketBeat: Earnings summary & press release

NRG Energy Company 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.