TimesSquare Capital Management LLC Invests $76.42 Million in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

TimesSquare Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 471,845 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $76,415,000. NRG Energy makes up 1.1% of TimesSquare Capital Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest position. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.24% of NRG Energy as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Glaxis Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of NRG Energy during the third quarter valued at approximately $567,000. Affinity Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in NRG Energy by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Affinity Wealth Management LLC now owns 43,943 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,117,000 after purchasing an additional 415 shares during the period. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. raised its position in NRG Energy by 58.1% during the 3rd quarter. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. now owns 19,992 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,238,000 after purchasing an additional 7,344 shares in the last quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co lifted its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 1.3% in the 3rd quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 14,408 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,333,000 after buying an additional 178 shares during the period. Finally, Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $104,000. 97.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other NRG Energy news, VP Brian Curci sold 60,580 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $161.71, for a total transaction of $9,796,391.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 93,089 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,053,422.19. This trade represents a 39.42% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CFO Bruce Chung sold 12,383 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.56, for a total transaction of $1,938,682.48. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 79,147 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $12,391,254.32. This represents a 13.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 172,556 shares of company stock worth $27,550,446. 0.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

NRG Energy Price Performance

Shares of NRG stock opened at $172.60 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.45, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 1.05. NRG Energy, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $79.57 and a fifty-two week high of $180.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.80 and a beta of 1.27. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $156.04 and its 200-day simple moving average is $159.94.

NRG Energy announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 6th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the utilities provider to purchase up to 9.2% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

NRG Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 2nd will be issued a $0.475 dividend. This is a boost from NRG Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. This represents a $1.90 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, February 2nd. NRG Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on NRG Energy from $185.00 to $195.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $198.00 to $181.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 27th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of NRG Energy from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley reissued an “underperform” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Thursday, November 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on NRG Energy from $202.00 to $206.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $184.91.

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.