NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $107.50 and last traded at $107.54, with a volume of 6423 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $104.51.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Guggenheim boosted their price target on NRG Energy from $77.00 to $118.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Jefferies Financial Group raised shares of NRG Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $93.00 to $113.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on NRG Energy from $84.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, NRG Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $111.43.

NRG Energy Stock Up 3.8 %

The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $96.01 and a 200-day moving average price of $87.68. The firm has a market cap of $21.97 billion, a PE ratio of 27.25, a PEG ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a current ratio of 1.17.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other NRG Energy news, VP Robert J. Gaudette sold 60,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.41, for a total transaction of $5,484,600.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 64,448 shares in the company, valued at $5,891,191.68. The trade was a 48.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Bruce Chung sold 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $97.63, for a total value of $1,952,600.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 69,454 shares in the company, valued at $6,780,794.02. This trade represents a 22.36 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.61% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On NRG Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of NRG Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in NRG Energy by 74.7% in the third quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in NRG Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt acquired a new position in NRG Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. increased its position in shares of NRG Energy by 100.4% in the 4th quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 455 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

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.