Versant Capital Management Inc Purchases 957 Shares of NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG)

Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its stake in NRG Energy, Inc. (NYSE:NRG) by 163.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,543 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 957 shares during the period. Versant Capital Management Inc’s holdings in NRG Energy were worth $139,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC increased its stake in NRG Energy by 32,962.3% in the 3rd quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 1,052,705 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $95,901,000 after acquiring an additional 1,049,521 shares during the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of NRG Energy during the second quarter worth $53,773,000. Bridgewater Associates LP grew its holdings in shares of NRG Energy by 352.9% in the third quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 804,801 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $73,317,000 after purchasing an additional 627,121 shares during the last quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in NRG Energy in the 2nd quarter worth about $43,134,000. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec increased its holdings in NRG Energy by 52.2% during the 3rd quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 1,330,706 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $121,227,000 after purchasing an additional 456,573 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 97.72% of the company’s stock.

NRG Energy Stock Up 6.2 %

NRG stock opened at $98.50 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $93.87 and a 200 day moving average of $85.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.95 billion, a PE ratio of 24.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.29 and a beta of 1.12. NRG Energy, Inc. has a 52 week low of $50.23 and a 52 week high of $103.14. The company has a quick ratio of 1.10, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.57.

NRG Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, November 1st were paid a $0.4075 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.65%. NRG Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on NRG shares. Guggenheim raised their target price 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. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price target on NRG Energy from $94.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 19th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on NRG Energy from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 11th. Jefferies Financial Group upgraded NRG Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $93.00 to $113.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of NRG Energy from $84.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.71.

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.