nVerses Capital LLC Makes New Investment in CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP)

nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CNP - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 35,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,039,000. CenterPoint Energy comprises approximately 0.5% of nVerses Capital LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th largest holding.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Crewe Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Olistico Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy in the second quarter worth approximately $33,000. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of CenterPoint Energy by 60.3% in the first quarter. FinTrust Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,201 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 452 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tobam acquired a new stake in shares of CenterPoint Energy in the first quarter worth approximately $35,000. 91.77% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

CenterPoint Energy Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of CNP traded up $0.07 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $30.18. 9,267,398 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,408,865. The firm has a market cap of $19.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $28.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.87. CenterPoint Energy, Inc. has a 12-month low of $25.41 and a 12-month high of $31.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.79.

CenterPoint Energy (NYSE:CNP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 30th. The utilities provider reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.04. CenterPoint Energy had a net margin of 12.28% and a return on equity of 10.81%. The business had revenue of $1.91 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.88 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.28 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that CenterPoint Energy, Inc. will post 1.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

CenterPoint Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, December 12th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, November 21st will be given a dividend of $0.21 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, November 21st. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.78%. This is an increase from CenterPoint Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. CenterPoint Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.15%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CNP has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $28.00 to $32.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $29.00 price target on the stock. KeyCorp lowered shares of CenterPoint Energy from an "overweight" rating to a "sector weight" rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy from $30.00 to $32.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets restated a "market perform" rating and issued a $28.00 price target on shares of CenterPoint Energy in a report on Monday, August 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, CenterPoint Energy presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $29.91.

CenterPoint Energy 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.