CenterPoint Energy, Inc. $CNP Stock Position Lowered by Maryland State Retirement & Pension System

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System reduced its holdings in CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP) by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 607,412 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 46,675 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned approximately 0.09% of CenterPoint Energy worth $22,353,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of CNP. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new stake in CenterPoint Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. MidFirst Bank acquired a new stake in CenterPoint Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $38,000. Transamerica Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in CenterPoint Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $40,000. Silver Grove Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in CenterPoint Energy by 1,325.4% in the 3rd quarter. Silver Grove Financial Group Inc. now owns 955 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 888 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pin Oak Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $44,000. 91.77% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CNP shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a report on Thursday, October 29th. KeyCorp dropped their price target on CenterPoint Energy from $46.00 to $44.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, October 13th. Evercore set a $43.00 price target on CenterPoint Energy in a report on Monday, August 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on CenterPoint Energy from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 21st. Finally, HSBC started coverage on CenterPoint Energy in a research report on Thursday, October 22nd. They set a “buy” rating and a $44.00 price objective on the stock. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CenterPoint Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $44.29.

CenterPoint Energy Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of CNP opened at $40.98 on Thursday. CenterPoint Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $36.37 and a 12-month high of $45.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $27.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.43. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $39.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $41.62. The company has a current ratio of 1.15, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.19 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.17 billion. CenterPoint Energy had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 11.16%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.50 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that CenterPoint Energy, Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current year.

CenterPoint Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.3%. CenterPoint Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.86%.

About CenterPoint Energy

CenterPoint Energy, Inc. is a regulated energy delivery company based in Houston, Texas. Its main businesses are electric transmission and distribution and natural gas distribution, connecting customers to energy and maintaining the infrastructure that delivers it. The company’s electric utility operations serve the Houston area, while its natural gas utilities serve customers in Texas, Indiana, Minnesota and Ohio. CenterPoint Energy’s services include operating and maintaining power lines, gas distribution systems and related utility infrastructure.