Amundi Raises Holdings in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)

Amundi increased its position in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 76.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 501,787 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 217,167 shares during the period. Amundi’s holdings in NRG Energy were worth $49,446,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 6.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,399,098 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $494,225,000 after purchasing an additional 313,478 shares during the period. Banco Santander S.A. boosted its stake in NRG Energy by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 2,828,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $255,142,000 after purchasing an additional 7,500 shares during the period. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. boosted its stake in NRG Energy by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 2,663,441 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $242,639,000 after purchasing an additional 182,481 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in NRG Energy by 1,010.1% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,557,350 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $140,504,000 after purchasing an additional 1,417,057 shares during the period. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec boosted its stake in NRG Energy by 52.2% in the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 1,330,706 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $121,227,000 after purchasing an additional 456,573 shares during the period. 97.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NRG Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NRG opened at $92.40 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $18.30 billion, a PE ratio of 23.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.01 and a beta of 1.13. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $102.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $94.30. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $62.14 and a 12-month high of $117.26.

NRG Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a $0.44 dividend. This is an increase from NRG Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.41. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. This represents a $1.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.90%. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is presently 35.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on NRG shares. StockNews.com downgraded NRG Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 8th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on NRG Energy from $86.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on NRG Energy from $140.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded NRG Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the stock from $93.00 to $113.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded NRG Energy from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $74.00 to $126.00 in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $123.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CFO Bruce Chung sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.63, for a total value of $1,952,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 69,454 shares in the company, valued at $6,780,794.02. The trade was a 22.36 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.41, for a total value of $5,484,600.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 64,448 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,891,191.68. The trade was a 48.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

NRG Energy Profile

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.