Clearway Energy (NYSE:CWEN) Posts Earnings Results, Misses Estimates By $0.90 EPS

Clearway Energy (NYSE:CWEN) posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday. The company reported ($1.35) EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.45) by ($0.90), Zacks reports. Clearway Energy had a return on equity of 3.01% and a net margin of 11.83%.

Here are the key takeaways from Clearway Energy’s conference call:

• Clearway reaffirmed 2026 CAFD guidance, reiterated a 2027 CAFD per share target of $2.70+ and said it now expects to deploy ~20% more corporate capital through 2026–2029 (raising the 2026–2029 plan to $3 billion), and is targeting the top end or better of its 2030 CAFD per share range of $2.90–$3.10.
• Significant progress on co‑located digital infrastructure: equipment purchases, a design/delivery partnership with Quanta & Blattner, PPAs and interconnection activity — Clearway says first load could be served as soon as 2028 and a single complex could represent a >$1 billion capital opportunity, providing upside to targets.
• Fleet optimization is advancing: new Texas wind PPAs (with more expected), a repowering program (~$600M corporate capital at 11–12% CAFD yields), and the Cardinal acquisition closed with an expected CAFD yield in excess of 12%, all boosting cash‑flow visibility.
• Q1 results: adjusted EBITDA of $257M and CAFD of $70M with solar/battery and flexible generation in line, but wind was below budget due to weather and a Vestas turbine enhancement program at Alta; management nonetheless reaffirmed full‑year 2026 CAFD guidance of $470M–$510M.
• Capital allocation and funding moves: shareholders approved share‑class simplification to a single public security to increase float/liquidity, and the funding plan prioritizes retained CAFD, corporate debt (target leverage ~4–4.5x with ~45% debt on incremental funding) and accretive equity issuance while lowering payout ratio toward the 70s.

Clearway Energy Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of CWEN stock traded down $0.33 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $38.16. 1,270,069 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,005,645. The stock has a market cap of $7.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.87, a P/E/G ratio of 14.77 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $39.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $36.38. Clearway Energy has a 52-week low of $27.67 and a 52-week high of $41.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36, a current ratio of 1.13 and a quick ratio of 1.06.

Clearway Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd were given a dividend of $0.4602 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 2nd. This is a positive change from Clearway Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.8%. Clearway Energy’s payout ratio is currently 129.58%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on CWEN shares. Roth Mkm reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 target price (up from $40.00) on shares of Clearway Energy in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Clearway Energy from a “sell” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Saturday, April 25th. UBS Group set a $45.00 target price on shares of Clearway Energy in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft set a $41.00 target price on shares of Clearway Energy in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Clearway Energy from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Clearway Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.57.

Institutional Trading of Clearway Energy

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. National Bank of Canada FI lifted its position in shares of Clearway Energy by 201.9% during the third quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 975 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 652 shares during the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its position in shares of Clearway Energy by 280.9% during the third quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 956 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 705 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its position in shares of Clearway Energy by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 44,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,494,000 after buying an additional 720 shares during the last quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Clearway Energy by 84.6% during the fourth quarter. Scarborough Advisors LLC now owns 1,661 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,000 after buying an additional 761 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisory Services Network LLC lifted its position in shares of Clearway Energy by 2.7% during the second quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 30,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $994,000 after buying an additional 803 shares during the last quarter. 84.53% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Clearway Energy

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.