Clearway Energy (NYSE:CWEN) Upgraded by Zacks Research to Hold Rating

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Clearway Energy (NYSE:CWEN) from a strong sell rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. Wall Street Zen upgraded Clearway Energy from a “strong sell” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Sunday. Weiss Ratings upgraded Clearway Energy from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Clearway Energy from $56.00 to $60.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 27th. UBS Group raised their target price on Clearway Energy from $44.00 to $45.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce set a $42.00 price target on shares of Clearway Energy in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Clearway Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.00.

Clearway Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Clearway Energy stock opened at $34.53 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 45.43 and a beta of 0.89. Clearway Energy has a one year low of $27.67 and a one year high of $41.74. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $34.79 and a 200 day simple moving average of $37.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.55, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 1.02.

Clearway Energy (NYSE:CWEN) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $1.00 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.24 by $0.76. Clearway Energy had a return on equity of 1.60% and a net margin of 5.78%.The company had revenue of $481.00 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $473.92 million. On average, research analysts anticipate that Clearway Energy will post -0.67 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clearway Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $0.475 per share. This represents a $1.90 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. This is a positive change from Clearway Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.47. Clearway Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 250.00%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Clearway Energy

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in Clearway Energy by 12.0% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 35,333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,070,000 after purchasing an additional 3,787 shares during the last quarter. Jump Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Clearway Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at $215,000. Cerity Partners LLC grew its holdings in Clearway Energy by 1.8% in the second quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 68,489 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,192,000 after purchasing an additional 1,180 shares during the period. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP increased its position in Clearway Energy by 233.7% during the 2nd quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP now owns 45,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,469,000 after buying an additional 32,144 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Clearway Energy during the second quarter valued at $2,352,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.53% of the company’s stock.

Clearway Energy Company Profile

Clearway Energy Group (NYSE: CWEN) is a U.S.-based energy company specializing in the ownership, operation and development of clean and conventional power generation assets. The company’s portfolio spans utility-scale wind and solar farms, biogas and natural gas-fired thermal facilities, as well as distributed generation projects such as rooftop solar and energy storage. Clearway’s generation assets are largely underpinned by long-term power purchase agreements and service contracts with creditworthy counterparties, enabling stable, predictable cash flows.

Originally launched in 2013 as NRG Yield and rebranded to Clearway Energy in 2018 following a strategic sponsorship change, the business has grown into one of the largest independent renewable energy platforms in the United States.