HOUSTON - CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NYSE:CNP), an investor-owned utility, announced today that its Board of Directors has approved an increase in the company's quarterly cash dividend. The dividend has been raised by $0.010 to $0.2100 per share on the common stock, to be paid on December 12, 2024, to shareholders of record at the close of business on November 21, 2024.
This increase continues CenterPoint Energy's trend of raising its dividend, marking an 8% average annual growth in the dividend over the past three years. The new quarterly dividend rate results in an annualized dividend of $0.81 per share for the year 2024.
CenterPoint Energy has a long-standing presence in the utility sector, with a history spanning over 150 years. The company provides energy delivery services, including electric transmission and distribution, power generation, and natural gas distribution. It serves more than 7 million metered customers across Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Ohio, and Texas and employs approximately 9,000 people.
The dividend announcement reflects the company's commitment to providing value to its shareholders and is a sign of its financial health and positive outlook. CenterPoint Energy's consistent dividend growth is an essential aspect of the company's financial strategy, aiming to deliver stable and increasing returns to its investors.
This news is based on a press release statement from CenterPoint Energy, Inc.
In other recent news, CenterPoint Energy has been the subject of several major developments. The company matched earnings per share expectations for the second quarter of 2024 and reaffirmed its full-year 2024 non-GAAP EPS guidance range at $1.61 to $1.63. CenterPoint Energy also announced a $250 million stock sale, managed by Barclays Capital Inc. and Citigroup.
The company received approval for their final settlement in Texas Gas jurisdictions and is progressing with the sale of their Louisiana and Mississippi gas Local Distribution Companies (LDCs), expected to close in the first quarter of 2025. However, the company has faced several analyst downgrades from Wells Fargo, JPMorgan, KeyBanc Capital Markets, and BMO Capital, mainly due to regulatory concerns following Hurricane Beryl.
CenterPoint Energy has also appointed Keith Stephens as Senior Vice President and Chief Communications Officer, highlighting its commitment to enhancing stakeholder communication. The company is preparing for resiliency filings, with shareholders expected to absorb approximately $70 million in vegetation management costs and around $40 million in mobile generation earnings.
CenterPoint Energy's strategy includes addressing the financial impacts of recent storms through the use of Net Operating Loss (NOL) and other tax-related attributes. These efforts are seen as facilitating the sale processes of LDCs and the expected securitizations to fund growth initiatives. These are the recent developments shaping CenterPoint Energy's regulatory and financial future.
InvestingPro Insights
CenterPoint Energy's (NYSE: CNP) recent dividend increase is a testament to its commitment to shareholder returns, a practice it has maintained for over half a century. The company's ability to continue raising dividends is supported by a strong financial foundation, as indicated by the InvestingPro Data. With a market capitalization of approximately $18.64 billion and a Price/Earnings (P/E) ratio of 17.64, CenterPoint Energy demonstrates a balance of size and earnings performance that may appeal to investors seeking stability in the utility sector.
One of the critical InvestingPro Tips for CenterPoint Energy highlights its significant debt burden, which is an essential consideration for investors measuring the company's financial health against its dividend policy. Despite this, the company has managed to maintain dividend payments for 54 consecutive years, showcasing a resilient financial strategy and a commitment to returning value to shareholders. Additionally, analysts have a positive outlook on the company's profitability, predicting that CenterPoint Energy will be profitable this year, which is corroborated by its profitability over the last twelve months.
The InvestingPro platform offers further insights into CenterPoint Energy's financial metrics, including additional InvestingPro Tips that can help investors make more informed decisions. Currently, there are six additional tips available on the platform, which provide a comprehensive analysis of the company's financial position and future prospects. For those interested in a deeper dive into CenterPoint Energy's financials, these tips can be found at https://www.investing.com/pro/CNP.
Investors may also find the company's PEG Ratio of 0.45 and Price to Book ratio of 1.8 as indicators of potential value, especially when considering near-term earnings growth prospects. Furthermore, the company's latest revenue figures show a slight quarterly increase of 1.6%, suggesting some level of resilience in its operational performance amidst challenging market conditions.
As the next earnings date approaches on November 7, 2024, shareholders and potential investors will be watching closely to see if the company's financial trends will continue to support its dividend growth strategy.
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