Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 18,179 Shares of NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 396,159 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 18,179 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in NRG Energy were worth $64,158,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Holocene Advisors LP lifted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 767,014 shares in the last quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 492.5% in the second quarter. Worldquant Millennium Advisors LLC now owns 883,781 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $141,918,000 after purchasing an additional 734,624 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of NRG Energy by 4,470.7% during the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 614,524 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $99,521,000 after purchasing an additional 601,079 shares in the last quarter. TimesSquare Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in NRG Energy during the third quarter worth about $76,415,000. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. grew its position in NRG Energy by 87.2% in the 2nd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 673,152 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $108,095,000 after purchasing an additional 313,482 shares in the last quarter. 97.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NRG Energy Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE NRG opened at $178.82 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 15.92, a current ratio of 1.64 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.39 billion, a PE ratio of 45.39 and a beta of 1.27. NRG Energy, Inc. has a one year low of $79.57 and a one year high of $189.96. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $159.36 and its 200-day moving average price is $161.07.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 24th. The utilities provider reported $1.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.19 by ($0.15). The firm had revenue of $7.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.68 billion. NRG Energy had a net margin of 2.81% and a return on equity of 109.48%. The company’s revenue was up 13.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.56 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 EPS for the current year.

NRG Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, February 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 2nd were given a $0.475 dividend. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. This is an increase from NRG Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.44. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 2nd. NRG Energy’s payout ratio is presently 48.22%.

NRG Energy declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Thursday, November 6th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the utilities provider to buy up to 9.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on NRG Energy from $198.00 to $181.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Evercore began coverage on NRG Energy in a research report on Wednesday. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $215.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on NRG Energy from $202.00 to $206.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 20th. Morgan Stanley set a $153.00 price target on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of NRG Energy from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $190.67.

Insider Activity at NRG Energy

In other NRG Energy news, VP Brian Curci sold 46,976 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.84, for a total transaction of $7,461,667.84. Following the sale, the vice president owned 46,113 shares in the company, valued at $7,324,588.92. This represents a 50.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $158.76, for a total value of $7,144,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 63,920 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,147,939.20. The trade was a 41.31% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 172,556 shares of company stock worth $27,550,446. 0.86% of the stock is owned by corporate 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.