Machina Capital S.A.S. Buys 24,426 Shares of NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

Machina Capital S.A.S. raised its stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 285.8% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 32,974 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 24,426 shares during the quarter. NRG Energy makes up 1.1% of Machina Capital S.A.S.’s holdings, making the stock its 8th largest position. Machina Capital S.A.S.’s holdings in NRG Energy were worth $5,295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. GW&K Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of NRG Energy by 23.8% in the first quarter. GW&K Investment Management LLC now owns 672 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $64,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in NRG Energy by 99.2% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 413,911 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $39,512,000 after acquiring an additional 206,096 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its position in NRG Energy by 32.7% during the first quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 10,082 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $962,000 after acquiring an additional 2,484 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in NRG Energy by 2.7% during the second quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 10,736 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,733,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the period. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in NRG Energy by 8.9% during the first quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 30,127 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,876,000 after acquiring an additional 2,450 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on NRG. Melius began coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $308.00 target price on the stock. Citigroup boosted their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $133.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Melius Research began coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research report on Wednesday, August 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $308.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised shares of NRG Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $167.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $197.54.

NRG Energy Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE:NRG opened at $171.90 on Monday. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $79.57 and a 52 week high of $180.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.99, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.93. The company’s fifty day moving average is $161.86 and its 200-day moving average is $151.99. The company has a market capitalization of $33.25 billion, a PE ratio of 77.78 and a beta of 1.14.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.68 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.72 by ($0.04). NRG Energy had a net margin of 1.78% and a return on equity of 88.22%. The firm had revenue of $6.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.63 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $3.37 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

NRG Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, November 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 3rd will be paid a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 3rd. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is currently 79.64%.

Insider Activity at NRG Energy

In related news, VP Dak Liyanearachchi sold 10,672 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, September 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $155.00, for a total transaction of $1,654,160.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 48,571 shares in the company, valued at $7,528,505. This represents a 18.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

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.