NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) Sets New 1-Year Low – Time to Sell?

NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday. The company traded as low as $96.86 and last traded at $97.19, with a volume of 2822963 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $100.37.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane set a $221.00 price target on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $162.00 to $159.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Barclays lifted their target price on NRG Energy from $200.00 to $204.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on NRG Energy from $203.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated a “market perform” rating and set a $214.00 price objective on shares of NRG Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $198.21.

NRG Energy Price Performance

The company has a market cap of $20.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.71 and a beta of 1.18. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $117.85 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $134.83. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.17.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 4th. The utilities provider reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.69 by ($0.20). The firm had revenue of $7.48 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.31 billion. NRG Energy had a return on equity of 52.95% and a net margin of 2.56%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 11.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.73 earnings per share. NRG Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 7.900-9.900 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 8.61 earnings per share for the current year.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, August 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were given a $0.4750 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.0%. NRG Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 50.26%.

Insider Activity

In related news, CAO Gerald Alfred Spencer sold 1,580 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $120.93, for a total transaction of $191,069.40. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 6,213 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $751,338.09. This represents a 20.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Corporate insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of NRG Energy

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in NRG. Victory Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in NRG Energy by 178.1% during the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 7,676,513 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,222,409,000 after acquiring an additional 4,916,653 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new stake in shares of NRG Energy during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $473,391,000. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its position in NRG Energy by 16.7% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 2,192,394 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $320,396,000 after purchasing an additional 313,410 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in NRG Energy by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,191,133 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $320,145,000 after purchasing an additional 21,666 shares during the period. Finally, Capital World Investors bought a new position in NRG Energy during the 4th quarter worth $305,817,000. Institutional investors own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

NRG Energy Company Profile

NRG Energy, Inc is a North American energy and home services company headquartered in Houston, Texas. The company operates through power generation and energy retail businesses, supplying electricity and related services to residential, commercial and industrial customers.

NRG owns and operates a diverse portfolio of power-generation assets, including natural gas, coal, nuclear and renewable facilities. It also sells electricity and natural gas through brands such as Reliant, Direct Energy and Green Mountain Energy, with retail operations serving customers in competitive energy markets across the United States and Canada.

In addition to its energy operations, NRG provides smart-home, security and related connected-home services through its Vivint business.