Analysts Set CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP) Price Target at $33.50

Shares of CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP) have earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twelve analysts that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, seven have issued a hold recommendation and four have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $33.77.

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Guggenheim lowered shares of CenterPoint Energy from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on CenterPoint Energy from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of CenterPoint Energy from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $36.00 to $37.00 in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. UBS Group raised shares of CenterPoint Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $31.00 to $37.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 3rd. Finally, Scotiabank raised CenterPoint Energy from a “sector perform” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $30.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On CenterPoint Energy

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CNP. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the third quarter worth about $26,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp acquired a new position in shares of CenterPoint Energy during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 657.1% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 901 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 782 shares during the period. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in CenterPoint Energy by 51.3% during the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 1,106 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 375 shares in the last quarter. 91.77% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

CenterPoint Energy Stock Performance

Shares of CNP opened at $35.77 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.92, a current ratio of 1.08 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91. CenterPoint Energy has a 52-week low of $25.41 and a 52-week high of $36.19. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $33.49 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.45. The company has a market capitalization of $23.34 billion, a PE ratio of 22.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.91.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The utilities provider reported $0.40 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40. CenterPoint Energy had a return on equity of 10.02% and a net margin of 11.79%. The business had revenue of $2.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.46 billion. Equities research analysts predict that CenterPoint Energy will post 1.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CenterPoint Energy Company Profile

CenterPoint Energy, Inc operates as a public utility holding company in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Electric and Natural Gas. The Electric segment includes electric transmission and distribution services to electric customers and electric generation assets, as well as optimizes assets in the wholesale power market.