ING Groep NV Decreases Stock Position in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)

ING Groep NV cut its stake in shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 81.9% in the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 27,601 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 124,670 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV’s holdings in NRG Energy were worth $2,514,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of NRG. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in NRG Energy in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in NRG Energy by 74.7% during the 3rd quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Harbor Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in NRG Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt bought a new stake in NRG Energy in the 3rd quarter worth $36,000. Finally, Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in shares of NRG Energy in the second quarter valued at about $32,000. 97.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Rasesh M. Patel sold 102,603 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.35, for a total transaction of $8,244,151.05. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 163,680 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,151,688. This trade represents a 38.53 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.86% of the company’s stock.

NRG Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NRG stock opened at $92.19 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 1.10 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $88.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.44. The stock has a market cap of $18.67 billion, a PE ratio of 23.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 1.10. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 12 month low of $44.90 and a 12 month high of $102.84.

NRG Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a dividend of $0.4075 per share. This represents a $1.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. NRG Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 40.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on NRG. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of NRG Energy in a report on Friday, September 13th. They set a “hold” rating and a $82.00 target price for the company. Citigroup boosted their target price on NRG Energy from $84.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. StockNews.com lowered NRG Energy from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, September 2nd. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of NRG Energy from $77.00 to $118.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of NRG Energy from $90.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, NRG Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $97.43.

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.