CNP
CenterPoint Energy, Inc.
CNP's fundamentals are mixed: revenue grew 7.8%, but free cash flow was negative. At 23x earnings, it's trading above its usual 21x. Analysts expect earnings growth.
CNP Fundamentals
| Metric | Status |
|---|---|
| Healthy | |
| Strong | |
| Weak | |
| Weak |
CNP's revenue and profitability are currently healthy, but its cash flow and balance sheet are weak.
CNP PE Valuation
| Level | PE | Price | Vs current |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheap | 13x | $23.38 | -43% |
| Forward | 20x | $40.95 | — |
| Fair | 21x | $36.90 | -9.9% |
| Current | 23x | $40.95 | — |
| Expensive | 25x | $44.03 | +7.5% |
Historical ranges are pointers, not guarantees.
CNP's PE is in its expensive range at 23x. If earnings grow as analysts expect, today's price would be 20x next year's earnings, in its fair range.
CNP Forward outlook
| Metric | Outlook |
|---|---|
| Improving | |
| Growth | |
| Growth | |
| Stable | |
| Limited | |
| Moderate |
Analysts expect earnings and revenue growth for CNP, with profitability holding steady.
CNP Earnings Per Share
| Quarter | TTM EPS | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Forward | $2.04 | +17% |
| Q3 2026 | $1.75 | +11% |
| Q2 2026 | $1.70 | +20% |
| Q1 2026 | $1.63 | +10% |
| Q4 2025 | $1.60 | +1.3% |
| Q3 2025 | $1.57 | +3.3% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.42 | -12% |
| Q1 2025 | $1.48 | +3.5% |
| Q4 2024 | $1.58 | +15% |
CNP's earnings per share have fallen from their peak: $1.75 over the past year, against $2.54 in early 2022.
CNP Quarterly Revenue
| Quarter | Revenue | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | $2.2B | +10% |
| Q2 2026 | $2.2B | +11% |
| Q1 2026 | $3B | +1.9% |
| Q4 2025 | $2.5B | +11% |
| Q3 2025 | $2B | +7.1% |
| Q2 2025 | $1.9B | +2% |
| Q1 2025 | $2.9B | +11% |
| Q4 2024 | $2.3B | +3.7% |
CNP's revenue has grown year over year for eight quarters in a row: $2.2B last quarter, up 10% from the same quarter a year ago.
| Quarter | Margin | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 30% | +5.2 points |
| Q2 2026 | 25% | +3.4 points |
| Q1 2026 | 22% | -0.1 points |
| Q4 2025 | 22% | +0.3 points |
| Q3 2025 | 25% | +2.4 points |
| Q2 2025 | 21% | -3.1 points |
| Q1 2025 | 22% | -1.3 points |
| Q4 2024 | 21% | +6.6 points |
CNP's operating margin was 30% last quarter, up 5.2 points from the same quarter a year ago, near the top of its range since 2019.
CNP Free Cash Flow
| Quarter | Free cash flow | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | -$611M | -$131M |
| Q2 2026 | -$592M | -$23M |
| Q1 2026 | -$916M | -$288M |
| Q4 2025 | -$707M | +$416M |
| Q3 2025 | -$480M | +$228M |
| Q2 2025 | -$569M | -$333M |
| Q1 2025 | -$628M | -$321M |
| Q4 2024 | -$1.1B | -$853M |
CNP has burned cash in almost every quarter: −$2.8B over the past year, against −$2.8B the year before.
CNP Total Shares
| Period | Change % | Net change |
|---|---|---|
| Quarterly | -0.3% | -2.2M shares |
| 1 year | +1.2% | +8M shares |
| 3 years | +4.9% | +31M shares |
| 5 years | +9% | +54.6M shares |
| Available history | +31% | +159M shares |
CNP has 664M diluted shares, up 1.2% from a year ago.
CNP Net Leverage
| Quarter | Net Leverage | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2026 | 5.7x | High |
| Q2 2026 | 5.9x | High |
| Q1 2026 | 5.9x | High |
| Q4 2025 | 6.3x | High |
| Q3 2025 | 5.6x | High |
| Q2 2025 | 6.2x | High |
| Q1 2025 | 5.7x | High |
| Q4 2024 | 6.1x | High |
CNP's net debt is about 5.7 years of its operating earnings (EBITDA), about the same as a year ago.
CNP Weekly Momentum
| Metric | Value | Status |
|---|---|---|
| RSI | 50.9 | Neutral |
| Stochastic | 69.1 | Neutral |
CNP's weekly RSI is 51 (neutral) and its Stochastic is 69 (neutral).
CNP PE vs Utilities Sector
| Metric | CNP | Sector median | Relative |
|---|---|---|---|
| PE | 23x | 20x | 15% above |
| PE % | 71 | 44 | 27 pts above |
CNP is trading at 23x earnings, a 15% premium to the Utilities sector's median of 20x.
CNP Weekly Moving Averages
| Moving average | MA price | Relative |
|---|---|---|
| 8 week MA | $39.9 | 2.7% above |
| 20 week MA | $40.7 | 0.7% above |
| 50 week MA | $41.2 | 0.6% below |
| 100 week MA | $38.9 | 5.3% above |
| 200 week MA | $33.9 | 21% above |
CNP's trend is mixed: it's above four of its five weekly moving averages, and 21% above its 200-week average.
CNP Yearly ROI
| Year | Start price | End price | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $26.9 | $21.6 | -20% |
| 2021 | $21.6 | $27.5 | +28% |
| 2022 | $27.5 | $30.7 | +12% |
| 2023 | $30.7 | $28.6 | -6.9% |
| 2024 | $28.6 | $32.2 | +13% |
| 2025 | $32.2 | $38.3 | +19% |
| 2026 YTD | $38.3 | $41.0 | +6.9% |
CNP has finished higher in four of the last six years. It's up 6.9% so far in 2026.