Central Puerto S.A. (NYSE:CEPU) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Central Puerto S.A. (NYSE:CEPU) was the recipient of a large drop in short interest in the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 560,500 shares, a drop of 6.0% from the December 15th total of 596,100 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 375,500 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 1.5 days.

Institutional Trading of Central Puerto

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Central Puerto in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in Central Puerto by 62.4% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,694 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 1,420 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Central Puerto during the third quarter worth approximately $121,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd bought a new position in shares of Central Puerto in the 3rd quarter worth $122,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Central Puerto in the 3rd quarter valued at $157,000. Institutional investors own 2.97% of the company’s stock.

Central Puerto Stock Performance

NYSE CEPU opened at $13.27 on Monday. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $14.20 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $11.23. Central Puerto has a 12-month low of $7.07 and a 12-month high of $16.60. The company has a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 5.20 and a beta of 1.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.97, a current ratio of 2.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18.

Central Puerto (NYSE:CEPU) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, November 11th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.39 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $185.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $200.26 million. Central Puerto had a net margin of 56.44% and a return on equity of 22.76%. Analysts anticipate that Central Puerto will post 0.63 earnings per share for the current year.

Central Puerto Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a — dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.3954 dividend. This is a positive change from Central Puerto’s previous — dividend of $0.07. This represents a dividend yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. Central Puerto’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.90%.

About Central Puerto

Central Puerto SA engages in the electric power generation in Argentina. It operates through three segments: Electric Power Generation from Conventional Sources, Electric Power Generation from Renewable Sources, and Natural Gas Transport and Distribution. The company generates energy through thermal, hydroelectric, and wind farms.