NRG stock bounces off more than 2-year low after dividend raised, to boost yield above 4.7%

Shares of NRG Energy Inc.
NRG,
+3.80%
bounced 2.1% in morning trading Friday, after the electricity generator and natural gas services company boosted its quarterly dividend by 7.9%, to 37.75 cents a share. The stock’s rally comes after the stock closed Thursday at the lowest price since November 2020. The new dividend will payable Feb. 15 to shareholders of record on Feb. 1. Based on current stock prices, the new annual dividend rate of $1.51 a share implies a dividend yield of 4.76%, which compares with the yield for the Utilities Select Sector SPDR exchange-traded fund
XLU,
+0.60%
of 3.01% and the implied yield for the S&P 500
SPX,
+1.89%
of 1.72%. NRG’s stock has tumbled 22.2% over the past three months, while the utilities ETF has rallied 10.1% and the S&P 500 has gained 7.2%.