Scotiabank Predicts Weaker Earnings for CenterPoint Energy

CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP) – Stock analysts at Scotiabank lowered their FY2025 earnings per share estimates for CenterPoint Energy in a research note issued to investors on Friday, January 23rd. Scotiabank analyst A. Weisel now expects that the utilities provider will earn $1.76 per share for the year, down from their prior forecast of $1.77. Scotiabank currently has a “Sector Outperform” rating and a $45.00 target price on the stock. The consensus estimate for CenterPoint Energy’s current full-year earnings is $1.75 per share.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.46 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $1.99 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.04 billion. CenterPoint Energy had a return on equity of 10.25% and a net margin of 11.37%.During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.31 earnings per share.

Several other analysts have also commented on the stock. Mizuho set a $42.00 price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $41.00 to $38.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. UBS Group cut their price target on CenterPoint Energy from $45.00 to $43.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. BMO Capital Markets raised CenterPoint Energy from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $42.00 price target for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 13th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered CenterPoint Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Sunday. Seven 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.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $41.82.

CenterPoint Energy Price Performance

NYSE:CNP opened at $38.74 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 0.51 and a quick ratio of 0.38. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $38.67 and a 200-day moving average price of $38.52. CenterPoint Energy has a 1-year low of $31.76 and a 1-year high of $40.50. The firm has a market cap of $25.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.52, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.59.

CenterPoint Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, February 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.23 per share. This is an increase from CenterPoint Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.22. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 19th. This represents a $0.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. CenterPoint Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 55.70%.

Insider Activity at CenterPoint Energy

In other news, Director Phillip R. Smith sold 6,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $38.83, for a total value of $240,746.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 65,577 shares in the company, valued at $2,546,354.91. This trade represents a 8.64% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of CenterPoint Energy

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Root Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in CenterPoint Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. acquired a new position in CenterPoint Energy during the third quarter worth about $26,000. LRI Investments LLC boosted its position in CenterPoint Energy by 107.9% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 684 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. purchased a new stake in CenterPoint Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $26,000. Finally, First Horizon Corp acquired a new stake in CenterPoint Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.