CenterPoint Energy, Inc. $CNP Shares Bought by CI Investments Inc.

CI Investments Inc. grew its holdings in CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP) by 14.8% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 685,933 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 88,345 shares during the quarter. CI Investments Inc.’s holdings in CenterPoint Energy were worth $29,605,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. New Age Alpha Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of CenterPoint Energy during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd lifted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC grew its position in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 165.0% in the fourth quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 734 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 457 shares during the period. DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Rexford Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy during the first quarter worth about $39,000. 91.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CenterPoint Energy Trading Up 2.3%

CNP opened at $43.71 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 1.04. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $43.06 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $42.24. CenterPoint Energy, Inc. has a 1-year low of $36.59 and a 1-year high of $45.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.46.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 23rd. The utilities provider reported $0.56 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.58 by ($0.02). CenterPoint Energy had a net margin of 11.38% and a return on equity of 10.56%. The company had revenue of $2.98 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.98 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.53 earnings per share. Analysts expect that CenterPoint Energy, Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CenterPoint Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, August 20th will be issued a $0.24 dividend. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 20th. This is an increase from CenterPoint Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.23. CenterPoint Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.44%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on CNP. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. BTIG Research assumed coverage on CenterPoint Energy in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. They set a “neutral” rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a report on Monday, June 15th. Truist Financial decreased their target price on CenterPoint Energy from $48.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered CenterPoint Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 25th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CenterPoint Energy has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $45.46.

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.