CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) Stock Rating Lowered by Wall Street Zen

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Sunday.

A number of other equities research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $45.00 to $43.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of CenterPoint Energy from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $41.00 target price on the stock in a report on Friday, December 12th. Mizuho set a $42.00 price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a research note on Tuesday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley restated an “underperform” rating and set a $37.00 price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upgraded CenterPoint Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CenterPoint Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.82.

CenterPoint Energy Stock Performance

NYSE CNP opened at $42.48 on Friday. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average is $39.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.59. CenterPoint Energy has a fifty-two week low of $33.24 and a fifty-two week high of $42.57.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CenterPoint Energy

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. AE Wealth Management LLC increased its position in CenterPoint Energy by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. AE Wealth Management LLC now owns 486,551 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $18,878,000 after purchasing an additional 15,754 shares during the period. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 15.4% in the 3rd quarter. Reaves W H & Co. Inc. now owns 7,220,266 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $280,146,000 after buying an additional 962,910 shares during the period. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC boosted its stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 23.3% in the third quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 171,036 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,636,000 after buying an additional 32,344 shares in the last quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in CenterPoint Energy by 31.1% during the third quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 350,798 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,611,000 after acquiring an additional 83,127 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the second quarter worth $313,456,000. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About CenterPoint Energy

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.