Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Makes New $6.16 Million Investment in CenterPoint Energy, Inc. $CNP

Key Points

• Mirae Asset Global Investments established a new CenterPoint Energy position, buying 167,248 shares valued at approximately $6.16 million in the third quarter. Institutional investors collectively own 91.77% of the utility’s stock.
• CenterPoint beat quarterly earnings expectations, reporting EPS of $0.53 versus estimates of $0.50 and revenue of $2.19 billion versus $2.17 billion expected.
• Analysts rate the stock a consensus Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $44.29. CenterPoint also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.24 per share, equivalent to a 2.4% annualized yield.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 167,248 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,155,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CNP. Deutsche Bank AG bought a new position in shares of CenterPoint Energy during the 2nd quarter worth about $770,871,000. Bank of America Corp DE acquired a new stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $332,753,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in CenterPoint Energy in the second quarter valued at about $250,273,000. GQG Partners LLC bought a new stake in CenterPoint Energy in the second quarter valued at about $176,574,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in CenterPoint Energy in the second quarter valued at about $163,893,000. Institutional investors own 91.77% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CNP has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $38.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on CenterPoint Energy from $46.00 to $44.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, October 13th. Barclays upped their price objective on CenterPoint Energy from $41.00 to $43.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Mizuho set a $43.00 target price on CenterPoint Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 28th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded CenterPoint Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $44.29.

CenterPoint Energy Stock Down 2.6%

CNP opened at $39.98 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $26.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.84, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.43. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a current ratio of 1.15. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $39.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.58. CenterPoint Energy, Inc. has a twelve month low of $36.37 and a twelve month high of $45.26.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The utilities provider reported $0.53 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $2.19 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.17 billion. CenterPoint Energy had a net margin of 11.76% and a return on equity of 11.16%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.50 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that CenterPoint Energy, Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CenterPoint Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, November 19th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. CenterPoint Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.86%.

CenterPoint Energy Company Profile

CenterPoint Energy, Inc is a public utility holding company that provides electric and natural gas energy services in the United States. Its operations include electric transmission and distribution, natural gas distribution, and related infrastructure services for residential, commercial, and industrial customers.

The company is the primary electric delivery utility for the Houston, Texas, area and operates electric and natural gas businesses in several states, including Texas, Indiana, Ohio, Louisiana, and Mississippi.

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