Citigroup Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Centrica (LON:CNA) Stock

Key Points

• Citigroup raised its price target on Centrica from GBX 200 to GBX 218 and kept a "buy" rating, implying about an 8.67% upside from the current price.
• Royal Bank of Canada also lifted its target to GBX 215 with an "outperform" rating, and the analyst consensus is a Moderate Buy with an average target of GBX 202.40.
• Insiders bought shares recently (notably Sue Whalley and Frank Mastiaux), with insiders acquiring 11,806 shares in the last 90 days and owning 0.39% of the company, suggesting insider confidence.

Centrica (LON:CNA - Get Free Report) had its price target lifted by stock analysts at Citigroup from GBX 200 to GBX 218 in a report released on Wednesday,London Stock Exchange reports. The brokerage currently has a "buy" rating on the integrated energy company's stock. Citigroup's price target would suggest a potential upside of 8.67% from the company's current price.

Separately, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on shares of Centrica from GBX 200 to GBX 215 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of GBX 202.40.

Centrica Stock Performance

LON CNA traded down GBX 0.40 during trading on Wednesday, reaching GBX 200.60. The company's stock had a trading volume of 13,889,258 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,928,509. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 0.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 98.77. Centrica has a 12 month low of GBX 137.55 and a 12 month high of GBX 201.70. The firm has a market capitalization of £9.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -133.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.45 and a beta of 0.48. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of GBX 187.49 and a 200 day moving average price of GBX 175.01.

Centrica (LON:CNA - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The integrated energy company reported GBX 11.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Centrica had a return on equity of 1.68% and a net margin of 0.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Centrica

In other news, insider Sue Whalley bought 513 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of GBX 190 per share, with a total value of £974.70. Also, insider Frank Mastiaux acquired 7,544 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 25th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of GBX 190 per share, with a total value of £14,333.60. In the last 90 days, insiders bought 11,806 shares of company stock worth $2,190,933. Insiders own 0.39% of the company's stock.

Centrica Company Profile

Centrica is energising a greener, fairer future for our colleagues, customers and communities. Our integrated business operates across the energy value chain, with over ten million Retail customers, leading brands such as British Gas and Bord Gáis Energy, and the UK's largest energy services workforce. Our Infrastructure businesses bring gas and electricity to the market every day and provide more than half of the UK's gas storage capacity, while our Optimisation business delivers world-class procurement and route-to-market capabilities to the Group and third parties, supporting energy security and our customers' decarbonisation journeys.

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