Bank of Nova Scotia Grows Stock Position in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

Bank of Nova Scotia increased its holdings in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 10.0% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 136,104 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 12,345 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia owned 0.07% of NRG Energy worth $22,042,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in NRG Energy by 41.8% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 5,187 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $468,000 after acquiring an additional 1,528 shares during the period. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of NRG Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $323,000. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 7.3% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 20,257 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,934,000 after purchasing an additional 1,381 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 40.7% in the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 17,114 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,634,000 after purchasing an additional 4,949 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in NRG Energy by 42.2% in the 2nd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,078 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $173,000 after purchasing an additional 320 shares during the period. 97.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on NRG Energy from $198.00 to $181.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Weiss Ratings downgraded NRG Energy from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 26th. Zacks Research raised NRG Energy from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. UBS Group began coverage on NRG Energy in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $211.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Raymond James Financial restated a “strong-buy” rating and set a $225.00 target price on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Monday, February 23rd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NRG Energy currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $196.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 45,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the vice president owned 63,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,147,939.20. The trade was a 41.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Brian Curci sold 60,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, January 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $161.71, for a total transaction of $9,796,391.80. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 93,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,053,422.19. This represents a 39.42% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 172,556 shares of company stock worth $27,550,446 in the last three months. 0.61% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

NRG Energy Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of NRG stock opened at $152.66 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.92, a quick ratio of 1.58 and a current ratio of 1.64. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $158.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $161.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.70 billion, a PE ratio of 38.75 and a beta of 1.26. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $79.57 and a 52-week high of $189.96.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.19 by ($0.15). NRG Energy had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 109.48%. The business had revenue of $7.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.56 earnings per share. NRG Energy’s revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NRG Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Investors of record on Monday, February 2nd were issued a $0.475 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. This is a boost from NRG Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is presently 48.22%.

About NRG Energy

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.