CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) Reaches New 1-Year High – Still a Buy?

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $48.00 price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a report on Monday, June 15th. KeyCorp upped their target price on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $41.00 to $47.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $38.00 to $44.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note 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’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, CenterPoint Energy currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $44.69.

CenterPoint Energy Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $28.66 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.84, a PEG ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.16. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $42.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $41.43.

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

CenterPoint Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CenterPoint Energy

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in CenterPoint Energy by 7.0% during the first quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,925 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 388 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC bought a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $346,000. Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $261,000. Strategic Investment Advisors MI boosted its stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 70.5% during the 1st quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 13,526 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $584,000 after acquiring an additional 5,591 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Resolution Capital Ltd purchased a new position in shares of CenterPoint Energy during the 1st quarter worth $1,816,000. 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.