Gradient Investments LLC Has $151,000 Stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)

Gradient Investments LLC boosted its holdings in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 2,792.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,938 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,871 shares during the quarter. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in NRG Energy were worth $151,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new stake in NRG Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $31,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in NRG Energy during the first quarter worth $33,000. Crewe Advisors LLC bought a new stake in NRG Energy during the first quarter worth $36,000. Central Pacific Bank Trust Division bought a new stake in NRG Energy during the first quarter worth $45,000. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its stake in NRG Energy by 43.6% in the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 781 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 237 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

NRG Energy Price Performance

NYSE NRG traded up $0.03 during trading on Friday, reaching $82.78. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,529,103 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,539,781. The stock has a market capitalization of $17.26 billion, a PE ratio of 11.73 and a beta of 1.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.61, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.95. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $77.61 and a 200 day moving average of $71.53. NRG Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $36.30 and a one year high of $87.58.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 8th. The utilities provider reported $3.37 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $1.82. The firm had revenue of $6.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.32 billion. NRG Energy had a return on equity of 42.60% and a net margin of 5.76%. The company’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.10 EPS. Analysts expect that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 4.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NRG Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, August 1st were given a dividend of $0.4075 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, August 1st. This represents a $1.63 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.97%. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is 23.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on the company. BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on NRG Energy from $73.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. StockNews.com cut NRG Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on NRG Energy from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on NRG Energy from $70.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 28th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $71.14.

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.