CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP) Stock Rated “Moderate Buy” by Sell-Side Brokerages

CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP) has received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eighteen analysts that are covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $44.93.

CNP has been the topic of several analyst reports. Evercore set a $43.00 price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a research report on Monday, August 17th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a report on Friday, September 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on CenterPoint Energy from $45.00 to $47.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $50.00 target price on CenterPoint Energy in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price target on CenterPoint Energy from $48.00 to $46.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th.

CenterPoint Energy Stock Up 0.1%

Shares of CenterPoint Energy stock opened at $36.85 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $24.27 billion, a PE ratio of 21.68, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.46. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $40.25 and its 200 day simple moving average is $42.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.95, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.12. CenterPoint Energy has a 52-week low of $36.49 and a 52-week high of $45.26.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 28th. The utilities provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.37 by $0.03. CenterPoint Energy had a return on equity of 11.10% and a net margin of 11.61%.The firm had revenue of $2.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.12 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.29 EPS. CenterPoint Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.890-1.910 EPS. On average, analysts predict that CenterPoint Energy will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CenterPoint Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. CenterPoint Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.47%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CenterPoint Energy

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC acquired a new position in CenterPoint Energy during the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its stake in CenterPoint Energy by 49.6% in the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 709 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. bought a new position in shares of CenterPoint Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its position in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 165.0% in the 4th quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 734 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares during the period. Finally, MidFirst Bank bought a new position in shares of CenterPoint Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.77% of the company’s stock.

About CenterPoint Energy

CenterPoint Energy, Inc (NYSE:CNP) is an energy delivery company headquartered in Houston, Texas. Its primary businesses include electric transmission and distribution and natural gas distribution, with operations focused on delivering energy to residential, commercial and industrial customers rather than producing most of the energy it supplies.

CenterPoint operates electric utility infrastructure in the Houston metropolitan area and in southwestern Indiana. The company also provides natural gas distribution services in Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi and Ohio.