Meyer Handelman Co. Boosts Position in NRG Energy, Inc. $NRG

Meyer Handelman Co. boosted its stake in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 3.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 101,953 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,727 shares during the quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. owned approximately 0.05% of NRG Energy worth $16,511,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in NRG. Aviva PLC lifted its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 9.7% in the 2nd quarter. Aviva PLC now owns 155,392 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $24,953,000 after buying an additional 13,757 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. increased its stake in shares of NRG Energy by 68.2% during the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 251,366 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,364,000 after buying an additional 101,922 shares during the period. Global Retirement Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of NRG Energy in the second quarter valued at about $418,000. Trek Financial LLC purchased a new stake in NRG Energy in the second quarter worth about $3,368,000. Finally, Morningstar Investment Management LLC bought a new position in NRG Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $244,000. 97.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

NRG Energy Price Performance

NYSE NRG opened at $160.89 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $165.34 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $159.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.05 and a beta of 1.26. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.45. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $79.57 and a 12-month high of $180.54.

NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $2.78 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.85. NRG Energy had a return on equity of 103.57% and a net margin of 4.84%.The firm had revenue of $7.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.90 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that NRG Energy, Inc. will post 6.36 EPS for the current fiscal year.

NRG Energy declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, November 6th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the utilities provider to buy up to 9.2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, November 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 3rd were issued a $0.44 dividend. This represents a $1.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 3rd. NRG Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at NRG Energy

In other news, VP Virginia Kinney sold 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.82, for a total transaction of $3,276,400.00. Following the transaction, the vice president owned 43,191 shares in the company, valued at $7,075,549.62. This represents a 31.65% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on NRG. UBS Group started coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $211.00 price target for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Monday. Zacks Research lowered NRG Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company raised NRG Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $198.00 price target on shares of NRG Energy in a research report on Monday, October 20th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, NRG Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $199.21.

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.