NRG Energy, Inc. (NRG) to Distribute Quarterly Dividend of $0.41 on May 15th

NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) announced a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, April 17th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be given a dividend of 0.4075 per share by the utilities provider on Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $1.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%.

NRG Energy has raised its dividend payment by an average of 8.0% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 5 consecutive years. NRG Energy has a payout ratio of 23.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect NRG Energy to earn $6.32 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.63 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 25.8%.

NRG Energy Stock Down 3.9 %

NYSE NRG opened at $70.52 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.49. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $62.81 and its 200 day simple moving average is $52.79. NRG Energy has a 12 month low of $30.52 and a 12 month high of $76.54.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.20. The business had revenue of $6.81 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.51 billion. NRG Energy had a negative net margin of 0.70% and a positive return on equity of 44.03%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that NRG Energy will post 5.36 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

NRG has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $58.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 29th. StockNews.com raised shares of NRG Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $51.00 to $63.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $78.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, March 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $55.00 to $65.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, NRG Energy currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $59.50.

Insider Activity at NRG Energy

In related news, VP Rasesh M. Patel sold 49,092 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.59, for a total value of $3,072,668.28. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 356,962 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,342,251.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.86% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of NRG Energy

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd raised its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 2.5% in the first quarter. Point72 Hong Kong Ltd now owns 9,537 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $366,000 after purchasing an additional 231 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in NRG Energy by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 10,603 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $548,000 after buying an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund increased its holdings in NRG Energy by 3.9% during the third quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund now owns 8,427 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $323,000 after buying an additional 320 shares during the last quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC increased its holdings in NRG Energy by 3.2% during the first quarter. Advisor Partners II LLC now owns 11,138 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $382,000 after buying an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in NRG Energy by 3.7% during the first quarter. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. now owns 11,216 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $430,000 after buying an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. 97.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

NRG Energy Company Profile

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.