HighTower Advisors LLC Raises Holdings in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

HighTower Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 60,719 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 4,101 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in NRG Energy were worth $9,834,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

NRG Energy Trading Up 2.4%

Shares of NRG Energy stock opened at $179.17 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.45, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $156.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $160.11. The stock has a market cap of $38.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.78 and a beta of 1.27. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $79.57 and a 1-year high of $180.54.

NRG Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were paid a $0.475 dividend. This is a boost from NRG Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. NRG Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 28.40%.

NRG Energy declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, November 6th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the utilities provider to purchase up to 9.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on NRG shares. UBS Group began coverage on NRG Energy in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $211.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley set a $153.00 price target on NRG Energy in a research note on Tuesday. Zacks Research downgraded shares of NRG Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on NRG Energy from $202.00 to $206.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, NRG Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.73.

Insider Transactions at NRG Energy

In other news, VP Brian Curci sold 60,580 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 5th. The shares were 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. The trade was a 39.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 45,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.76, for a total transaction of $7,144,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 63,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,147,939.20. This represents a 41.31% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold a total of 172,556 shares of company stock worth $27,550,446 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

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.