Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Sells 6,897 Shares of CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP)

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. reduced its holdings in shares of CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP - Free Report) by 34.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 13,414 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 6,897 shares during the period. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in CenterPoint Energy were worth $426,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy during the third quarter worth $26,000. J.Safra Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Assetmark Inc. lifted its holdings in CenterPoint Energy by 657.1% during the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 901 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 782 shares in the last quarter. VSM Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in CenterPoint Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, BankPlus Trust Department bought a new position in CenterPoint Energy in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.77% of the company's stock.

CenterPoint Energy Stock Performance

Shares of CNP stock opened at $38.24 on Tuesday. CenterPoint Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.41 and a 12-month high of $39.03. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $35.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $32.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.08, a quick ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.91. The company has a market cap of $24.96 billion, a PE ratio of 24.05, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.65.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.55 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $2.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.73 billion. CenterPoint Energy had a net margin of 11.79% and a return on equity of 10.02%. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.55 earnings per share. Analysts expect that CenterPoint Energy, Inc. will post 1.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CenterPoint Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 12th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, May 15th will be paid a dividend of $0.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $0.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. CenterPoint Energy's payout ratio is 59.06%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CNP has been the subject of a number of research reports. Barclays upgraded CenterPoint Energy from an "underweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $30.00 to $37.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Scotiabank reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $40.00 price target (up previously from $35.00) on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a research report on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on CenterPoint Energy in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. They set a "buy" rating and a $42.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Monday, March 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CenterPoint Energy has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $35.79.

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.

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