CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the fourteen research firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $41.6364.

CNP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays raised their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $40.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Evercore ISI started coverage on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a research report on Monday, October 6th. They set an “in-line” rating and a $42.00 target price on the stock. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $39.00 to $41.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $43.00 to $41.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Finally, Mizuho set a $42.00 price target on CenterPoint Energy in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st.

CenterPoint Energy Stock Performance

CNP opened at $37.92 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $38.71 and a 200 day simple moving average of $38.31. CenterPoint Energy has a 1 year low of $30.86 and a 1 year high of $40.50. The company has a market capitalization of $24.76 billion, a PE ratio of 24.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.59.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.46 by $0.04. CenterPoint Energy had a return on equity of 10.25% and a net margin of 11.37%.The firm had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.04 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.31 EPS. Research analysts expect that CenterPoint Energy will post 1.75 EPS for the current year.

CenterPoint Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be given a dividend of $0.23 per share. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This is a positive change from CenterPoint Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. CenterPoint Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.23%.

Insider Activity at CenterPoint Energy

In related news, Director Phillip R. Smith sold 6,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.83, for a total value of $240,746.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 65,577 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,546,354.91. This trade represents a 8.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CenterPoint Energy

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC acquired a new position in shares of CenterPoint Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $254,000. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in CenterPoint Energy by 15.6% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 76,100 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,757,000 after acquiring an additional 10,277 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in CenterPoint Energy by 5.8% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 69,683 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,525,000 after acquiring an additional 3,821 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in CenterPoint Energy by 11.5% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 13,411 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $486,000 after purchasing an additional 1,384 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Woodline Partners LP lifted its stake in CenterPoint Energy by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 55,061 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,995,000 after purchasing an additional 15,922 shares during the last quarter. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CenterPoint Energy Company Profile

CenterPoint Energy, Inc (NYSE: CNP) is a Houston-based regulated utility company that provides electric and natural gas delivery services and related infrastructure operations. The company’s principal activities center on the transmission and distribution of electricity in the greater Houston metropolitan area and the distribution of natural gas to customers across several states in the Midwest and South. As a vertically integrated utility, CenterPoint focuses on the reliable delivery of energy through owned and operated networks of lines, pipelines and associated facilities.

CenterPoint’s core businesses include regulated electric transmission and distribution services, regulated natural gas distribution, and the operation and maintenance of energy infrastructure.