L & S Advisors Inc Trims Stock Holdings in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

L & S Advisors Inc lowered its stake in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 22.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,825 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 7,864 shares during the period. L & S Advisors Inc’s holdings in NRG Energy were worth $4,308,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Toth Financial Advisory Corp purchased a new stake in shares of NRG Energy in the second quarter worth about $27,000. Bank of Jackson Hole Trust bought a new position in NRG Energy in the second quarter valued at $28,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC bought a new stake in NRG Energy during the second quarter worth about $32,000. Kiker Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $37,000. Finally, ORG Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 422.2% during the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 282 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $44,000 after buying an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. 97.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NRG Energy Price Performance

NRG Energy stock opened at $166.16 on Friday. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 52-week low of $79.57 and a 52-week high of $180.54. The company has a market cap of $31.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 75.19 and a beta of 1.16. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $165.91 and its 200 day moving average is $155.55. The company has a quick ratio of 0.88, a current ratio of 0.93 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.99.

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

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

NRG Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.44 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 3rd. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is currently 26.31%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Dak Liyanearachchi sold 10,672 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total value of $1,654,160.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 48,571 shares in the company, valued at $7,528,505. This trade represents a 18.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Melius Research initiated coverage on NRG Energy in a research note on Wednesday, August 20th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $308.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upgraded shares of NRG Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Barclays raised their price objective on NRG Energy from $197.00 to $203.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Zacks Research upgraded NRG Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on NRG Energy from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 7th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $198.31.

About NRG Energy

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.