Rakuten Investment Management Inc. Buys New Stake in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

Rakuten Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 44,451 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,199,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 0.7% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 5,411,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $865,437,000 after purchasing an additional 39,253 shares during the last quarter. Holocene Advisors LP grew its holdings in NRG Energy by 113.3% during the 2nd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,444,271 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $231,921,000 after buying an additional 767,014 shares in the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its stake in NRG Energy by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 975,218 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $156,601,000 after acquiring an additional 19,997 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 36.4% during the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 887,413 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $142,501,000 after acquiring an additional 237,009 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 492.5% during the 2nd quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 883,781 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $141,918,000 after acquiring an additional 734,624 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

NRG Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:NRG opened at $151.11 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.45. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $79.57 and a 12 month high of $180.54. The company has a market capitalization of $28.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.59 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $159.68 and its 200 day moving average is $159.79.

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. NRG Energy had a return on equity of 103.57% and a net margin of 4.84%.The business had revenue of $7.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.53 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.90 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 EPS for the current year.

NRG Energy announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, November 6th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the utilities provider to buy up to 9.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $198.00 price target on shares of NRG Energy in a research report on Monday, October 20th. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $211.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $202.00 to $206.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday. 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 report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “underperform” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a research report on Thursday, November 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $186.45.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Brian Curci sold 46,976 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $158.84, for a total value of $7,461,667.84. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 46,113 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,324,588.92. This represents a 50.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.76, for a total transaction of $7,144,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 63,920 shares in the company, valued at $10,147,939.20. This represents a 41.31% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 192,556 shares of company stock worth $30,826,846. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.