NRG · Utilities(electric services) · 10 years of annual accounts filed with the SEC · latest fiscal year ended 2025-12-31
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NRG Energy, Inc. reported revenue of $30.3 billion in fiscal 2025, after growing 14.6% a year over the previous 9 years. Its operating margin widened from 0.4% in 2016 to 6.1%. Of the $13.0 billion its operations generated over 10 years, 53.6% went to buybacks and 34.6% back into the business; the share count fell 37.0%. On the accounting screens, it passes 5 of 7 Piotroski tests and its Altman Z'' of 1.86 is in the grey zone; none of the six cross-checks between its statements fires.
Revenue, fiscal 202530.3B+14.6% a year over 9 years
Operating margin6.1%gross margin —
Return on invested capital—12.8% on average over 4 years
Free cash flow after stock pay632.0M2.1% of revenue
Net debt ÷ EBITDA—net debt —
Piotroski F-score5/7tests of improvement passed
Is it growing?
Revenue and the operating income it turns into. Growth that does not reach operating income is growth bought with margin.
RevenueOperating income
-10.0B010.0B20.0B30.0B40.0B
2016Revenue 8.9BOperating income 33.0M
2017Revenue 9.1BOperating income -741.0M
2018Revenue 8.1BOperating income 982.0M
2019Revenue 8.0BOperating income 1.3B
2020Revenue 8.7BOperating income 1.1B
2021Revenue 26.8BOperating income 3.3B
2022Revenue 31.5BOperating income 2.0B
2023Revenue 28.3BOperating income 384.0M
2024Revenue 27.7BOperating income 2.4B
2025Revenue 30.3BOperating income 1.8B
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Compound growth a year
3 yrs
5 yrs
9 yrs
Revenue
-1.2%
+28.4%
+14.6%
Operating income
-2.9%
+10.8%
+56.4%
Net income
-10.9%
+11.1%
—
Earnings per share
-5.7%
+15.9%
—
Free cash flow per share
—
-10.0%
-1.3%
Dividend per share
+13.7%
+11.5%
+27.0%
Shares
-5.5%
-4.2%
-5.0%
Falling shares are buybacks: each remaining share owns more of the company.
Does it earn more than its capital costs?
Margins say how much of each sale is kept; return on invested capital says how much the business earns on the money it needs to operate. Growth only creates value when that return is above the cost of the capital.
Return on invested capitalCost of capital today · 10.2%
-60.0%-40.0%-20.0%-0.0%20.0%40.0%
2016Return on invested capital 0.2%
2017Return on invested capital -6.7%
2018Return on invested capital 17.7%
2019Return on invested capital -54.3%
2020Return on invested capital 7.0%
2021Return on invested capital 21.8%
2022Return on invested capital 12.4%
2023Return on invested capital 2.9%
2024Return on invested capital 14.1%
2025
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Economic profit
Economic profit
-6.0B-4.0B-2.0B02.0B
2016Economic profit -2.1B
2017Economic profit -1.9B
2018Economic profit 412.3M
2019Economic profit -5.0B
2020Economic profit -330.9M
2021Economic profit 1.4B
2022Economic profit 268.6M
2023Economic profit -1.0B
2024Economic profit 523.6M
2025
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
(return on capital − cost of capital) × capital invested: the profit left after paying for the money used. Today's cost of capital is applied to every year, since a past one cannot be rebuilt honestly.
Return on equity
51.4%
Return on assets
3.0%
Asset turnover
1.04×
Overheads (SG&A)
8.6% of revenue
Is the profit cash, and where does the cash go?
Net income is an accounting opinion; free cash flow is what was left in the bank after investing. Stock-based pay does not leave the bank — shareholders pay it through dilution — so it is shown taken off as well.
Net incomeFree cash flowAfter stock-based pay
-4.0B-2.0B02.0B4.0B6.0B
2016Net income -774.0MFree cash flow 1.4BAfter stock-based pay 1.4B
2017Net income -2.2BFree cash flow 1.4BAfter stock-based pay 1.3B
2018Net income 268.0MFree cash flow 989.0MAfter stock-based pay 964.0M
2019Net income 4.4BFree cash flow 1.2BAfter stock-based pay 1.2B
2020Net income 510.0MFree cash flow 1.6BAfter stock-based pay 1.6B
2021Net income 2.2BFree cash flow 224.0MAfter stock-based pay 203.0M
2022Net income 1.2BFree cash flow -7.0MAfter stock-based pay -35.0M
2023Net income -202.0MFree cash flow -819.0MAfter stock-based pay -920.0M
2024Net income 1.1BFree cash flow 1.8BAfter stock-based pay 1.7B
2025Net income 864.0MFree cash flow 766.0MAfter stock-based pay 632.0M
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Where 10 years of operating cash went, 2016–2025
13.0B generated by the business. Each band is its share of that total.
Reinvested in the business 35%4.5B
Acquisitions 5%612.0M
Dividends 18%2.3B
Share buybacks 54%7.0B
More than it generated: funded with cash or new debt -11%-1.4B
Over the same years it paid 498.0M in stock. The share count fell 37.0%. 6.5B of the buybacks went beyond offsetting that dilution.
Per share
Earnings per shareFree cash flow per shareDividend per share
$-10.00$0.00$10.00$20.00
2016Earnings per share $-2.45Free cash flow per share $4.32Dividend per share $0.24
2017Earnings per share $-6.79Free cash flow per share $4.28Dividend per share $0.12
2018Earnings per share $0.87Free cash flow per share $3.21Dividend per share $0.12
2019Earnings per share $16.81Free cash flow per share $4.49Dividend per share $0.12
2020Earnings per share $2.07Free cash flow per share $6.53Dividend per share $1.20
2021Earnings per share $8.93Free cash flow per share $0.91Dividend per share $1.30
2022Earnings per share $5.17Free cash flow per share $-0.03Dividend per share $1.41
2023Earnings per share $-0.89Free cash flow per share $-3.59Dividend per share $1.67
2024Earnings per share $5.31Free cash flow per share $8.65Dividend per share $1.91
2025Earnings per share $4.34Free cash flow per share $3.85Dividend per share $2.07
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Shares outstanding
Diluted shares
150.0M200.0M250.0M300.0M350.0M
2016Diluted shares 316.0M
2017Diluted shares 317.0M
2018Diluted shares 308.0M
2019Diluted shares 264.0M
2020Diluted shares 246.0M
2021Diluted shares 245.0M
2022Diluted shares 236.0M
2023Diluted shares 228.0M
2024Diluted shares 212.0M
2025Diluted shares 199.0M
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
How strong is the balance sheet?
Debt is not bad in itself; debt the business cannot service in a bad year is. Net debt is debt minus cash, and below zero the company holds more cash than it owes.
Net debt
05.0B10.0B15.0B20.0B
2016Net debt 16.1B
2017Net debt 8.7B
2018Net debt 6.1B
2019Net debt 5.7B
2020Net debt 5.0B
2021Net debt 7.8B
2022Net debt 7.7B
2023Net debt 10.4B
2024Net debt 9.9B
2025
2016201720182019202020212022202320242025
Net debt ÷ EBITDA
—
Interest coverage
2× operating income ÷ interest
Current ratio
1.64 current assets ÷ current liabilities
Cash conversion cycle
— collects in 49d
Three classic screens of the accounts
Each asks a different question of the same statements — is it improving, does it look like a company heading for distress, do the accounts resemble ones that were manipulated. None is a verdict; each shows what moves it.
Piotroski F-score
Is the business improving? Nine yes-or-no tests, this year against last.
5of 7 tests passed
✓ProfitableReturn on assets above zeropassed
✓Cash from operationsOperating cash flow above zeropassed
✕Profitability improvedReturn on assets higher than a year beforefailed
✓Profit backed by cashOperating cash flow above net income (low accruals)passed
–Less long-term debtLong-term debt as a share of assets fell — not reportedno data
✓More liquidCurrent ratio higher than a year beforepassed
✓No new sharesShare count did not growpassed
–Better gross marginGross margin higher than a year before — not reportedno data
✕Sells more per assetAsset turnover higher than a year beforefailed
Where it misleads: it measures change, not level. An excellent business that stood still for a year scores low; a poor one recovering from a disaster scores high.
Altman Z''-score
Does the balance sheet look like those of companies that went bankrupt?
1.86grey zone
1.12.6
Working capital ÷ assets 0.18 × 6.56+1.15
Retained earnings ÷ assets 0.07 × 3.26+0.22
Operating income ÷ assets 0.06 × 6.72+0.43
Equity ÷ liabilities 0.06 × 1.05+0.06
Where it misleads: buybacks. A company that returns so much cash that its equity turns small or negative sinks the last two ratios without being anywhere near bankruptcy. Banks and insurers do not fit the model at all.
Beneish M-score
Do the accounts resemble those of companies that manipulated their earnings?
The accounts lack too many of the lines it needs.
Where the statements disagree
Cross-checks between the income statement, the balance sheet and the cash flow for the latest year, each with the benign reading and the worrying one.
None of the six cross-checks fires for the latest year: receivables and inventory move with revenue, profit turns into cash, investment keeps up with depreciation, the tax rate is ordinary and debt is moderate.
What is it worth, under which assumptions?
A company is worth the cash it will generate, brought back to today. This model projects revenue with growth that fades over the years, applies a free cash flow margin, and discounts the result at the cost of capital. Every assumption says where it came from, and all of them can be changed.
Value per share, with these assumptions$309.32discounted at 10.2% a year · 56% of it from after year 10
Type a share price on the left to ask the reverse questions: what growth, what margin or what discount rate that price implies.
What the value implies, in the usual multiples
At this model's value
Price ÷ earnings
71.2×
Enterprise value ÷ EBITDA
18.9×
Enterprise value ÷ revenue
2.0×
Free cash flow yield
1.0%
From cash flows to a value per share
10 years of cash flow, today27.1B
Everything after, today34.4B
The whole business61.6B
Minus net debt-0
What belongs to shareholders61.6B
Divided among 199.0M shares: <strong>$309.32</strong> each.
The projection next to its history
Reported free cash flow after stock pay, then the model's. A projection that looks nothing like the past needs a reason.
ReportedProjected
-2.0B02.0B4.0B6.0B8.0B
2016Reported 1.4B
2017Reported 1.3B
2018Reported 964.0M
2019Reported 1.2B
2020Reported 1.6B
2021Reported 203.0M
2022Reported -35.0M
2023Reported -920.0M
2024Reported 1.7B
2025Reported 632.0M
2026Projected 2.4B
2027Projected 2.9B
2028Projected 3.5B
2029Projected 4.1B
2030Projected 4.7B
2031Projected 5.3B
2032Projected 5.9B
2033Projected 6.3B
2034Projected 6.6B
2035Projected 6.8B
2016201820202022202420262028203020322034
Year by year
2026
2027
2028
2029
2030
2031
2032
2033
2034
2035
Revenue
37.9B
46.5B
55.8B
65.5B
75.3B
84.8B
93.2B
100.2B
105.2B
107.9B
Growth
25.0%
22.5%
20.0%
17.5%
15.0%
12.5%
10.0%
7.5%
5.0%
2.5%
Cash margin
6.3%
6.3%
6.3%
6.3%
6.3%
6.3%
6.3%
6.3%
6.3%
6.3%
Free cash flow
2.4B
2.9B
3.5B
4.1B
4.7B
5.3B
5.9B
6.3B
6.6B
6.8B
Worth today
2.2B
2.4B
2.6B
2.8B
2.9B
3.0B
3.0B
2.9B
2.8B
2.6B
If the least-known inputs move
Value per share as two inputs change at a time. Neighbouring cells that differ a lot are the conclusion: the value depends on numbers nobody knows to a point.
The discount rate and growth forever
discount ↓ · forever →
1.5%
2.0%
2.5%
3.0%
3.5%
9.2%
320
340
362
387
417
9.7%
298
315
334
355
380
10.2%
279
293
309
328
349
10.7%
261
274
288
304
322
11.2%
246
257
269
283
299
Year-one growth and the final margin
margin ↓ · growth →
21.0%
23.0%
25.0%
27.0%
29.0%
5.0%
223
241
259
279
300
5.7%
245
264
284
306
330
6.3%
266
287
309
333
359
6.9%
287
310
334
360
388
7.5%
308
333
359
388
418
All the inputs moving at once
5,000 valuations, each with growth, final margin, discount rate and growth forever drawn at random around the values on the left (spreads of 3.0%, 2.0%, 1.0% and 0.5%). Not a probability — the spreads are assumptions too — but an honest picture of how wide the answer is.
10th percentile$196.69
Median$309.25
90th percentile$458.02
$200.00$400.00$600.00
Half of the simulations land between <b>$248.03</b> and <b>$380.20</b>; one in ten below $196.69, one in ten above $458.02.
Does the long run make sense?
7.8×The terminal value prices the business in year 10 at 7.8 times that year's EBITDA.
Free growthIn year 10 free cash flow is at or above after-tax operating profit, yet the model grows 2.5% forever. Growth needs reinvestment; this assumes it comes for free, which flatters the terminal value.
56%of the value comes from after year 10. The more of it, the more the answer depends on the part nobody can see.
What lenders charge, after the tax saving on interest: 6.67% × (1 − 23.8%) = <strong>5.08%</strong>.
Weighted by how much of each the company uses (book value (no price given)): <strong>10.17%</strong>, the rate every future cash flow is discounted at.
What it has filed lately
The last twelve months at the SEC, most important first: annual and quarterly reports, events, large holders and insiders.
Every Form 4 filed in the last twelve months, read line by line: 6 filings by 5 people. Open-market purchases and sales are counted apart from awards, option exercises and shares withheld for taxes.
Bought on the open market—none in the period
Sold on the open market$191,0691 sale(s) by 1 insider(s)
Under pre-arranged plans100%of the sales followed a 10b5-1 plan set months earlier
A Form 4 says what happened, when, how many shares and at what price. It does not say why: a sale can be diversification, a tax bill or a plan fixed months earlier, and an award is pay, not a purchase. Nothing here is a reason to buy or sell anything.
Which large funds report holding it
From the Form 13F of the 28 institutions followed on this site, as of the end of their last reported quarter. A 13F is filed up to 45 days later and shows only long positions in US-listed shares.
Accounts from the company's own SEC filings; lines some companies do not report are shown as a dash rather than estimated. The risk-free rate is the 10-year US Treasury yield. A DCF is a way of making assumptions explicit, not a forecast: it states what the company would be worth if the assumptions held. The scores are screens that point where to look, not verdicts. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell.