CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) Hits New 52-Week High – Here’s Why

CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP)’s stock price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $44.49 and last traded at $44.2170, with a volume of 703771 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $43.86.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CNP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on CenterPoint Energy from $46.00 to $45.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Bank of America raised their price target on CenterPoint Energy from $42.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $41.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Evercore set a $45.00 price objective on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Truist Financial dropped their target price on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $44.69.

CenterPoint Energy Stock Down 0.1%

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $42.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $41.43. The firm has a market cap of $28.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.04.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.02). CenterPoint Energy had a return on equity of 10.56% and a net margin of 11.38%.The company had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.98 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.53 earnings per share. CenterPoint Energy has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.890-1.910 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that CenterPoint Energy, Inc. will post 1.91 earnings per share for the current year.

CenterPoint Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, May 21st were paid a $0.23 dividend. This represents a $0.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, May 21st. CenterPoint Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.44%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CenterPoint Energy

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd increased its position in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 49.6% during the fourth quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 709 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC increased its position in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 165.0% during the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 734 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 457 shares in the last quarter. Rexford Capital Inc. purchased a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.77% of the company’s stock.

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.