Scotiabank Forecasts Reduced Earnings for CenterPoint Energy

CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP) – Research analysts at Scotiabank decreased their FY2025 earnings per share estimates for CenterPoint Energy in a note issued to investors on Friday, January 23rd. Scotiabank analyst A. Weisel now expects that the utilities provider will earn $1.76 per share for the year, down from their previous estimate of $1.77. Scotiabank has a “Sector Outperform” rating and a $45.00 price objective on the stock. The consensus estimate for CenterPoint Energy’s current full-year earnings is $1.75 per share.

Other equities research analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Mizuho set a $42.00 target price on CenterPoint Energy in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Barclays cut their target price on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $41.00 to $38.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $44.00 to $47.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of CenterPoint Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised shares of CenterPoint Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $41.82.

CenterPoint Energy Stock Up 1.7%

CNP opened at $39.46 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 0.38 and a current ratio of 0.51. The company has a market cap of $25.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.97, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.59. CenterPoint Energy has a one year low of $31.76 and a one year high of $40.50. The business’s fifty day moving average is $38.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.54.

CenterPoint Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. This is a boost from CenterPoint Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. CenterPoint Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.70%.

Insider Activity at CenterPoint Energy

In related news, Director Phillip R. Smith sold 6,200 shares of the 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 directly owned 65,577 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,546,354.91. This trade represents a 8.64% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.14% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On CenterPoint Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Capital International Investors lifted its stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 1.0% in the 3rd quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 87,129,628 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,381,069,000 after purchasing an additional 833,374 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in CenterPoint Energy by 0.4% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 81,661,325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,168,459,000 after buying an additional 298,892 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in CenterPoint Energy by 4.1% during the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 16,710,081 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $611,377,000 after buying an additional 652,202 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in CenterPoint Energy during the second quarter valued at approximately $313,456,000. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC grew its stake in CenterPoint Energy by 31.6% during the second quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 7,859,693 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $288,765,000 after buying an additional 1,886,374 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.77% of the company’s stock.

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.