Central Puerto (NYSE:CEPU) Shares Up 7.2% – Should You Buy?

Central Puerto S.A. (NYSE:CEPU) traded up 7.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $15.68 and last traded at $15.54. Approximately 488,008 shares changed hands during trading, an increase of 49% from the average session volume of 328,624 shares. The stock had previously closed at $14.49.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Separately, Bank of America raised their price target on Central Puerto from $11.00 to $12.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 11th.

Central Puerto Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 1.97 and a current ratio of 2.13. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $13.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $10.81. The firm has a market cap of $2.40 billion, a PE ratio of 6.21 and a beta of 1.23.

Central Puerto (NYSE:CEPU) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, November 11th. The company reported $0.20 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.39 by ($0.19). The company had revenue of $185.00 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $200.26 million. Central Puerto had a net margin of 56.44% and a return on equity of 22.76%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Central Puerto S.A. will post 0.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Central Puerto Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a — dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 13th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 29th were issued a $0.3954 dividend. This represents a yield of 1.4%. This is a positive change from Central Puerto’s previous — dividend of $0.07. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 29th. Central Puerto’s dividend payout ratio is 14.51%.

Institutional Trading of Central Puerto

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. purchased a new stake in Central Puerto during the third quarter worth approximately $34,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Central Puerto by 62.4% during the 3rd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,694 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 1,420 shares during the period. Verition Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in Central Puerto in the 3rd quarter valued at $121,000. Quadrature Capital Ltd purchased a new position in Central Puerto in the third quarter valued at about $122,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Central Puerto during the third quarter worth about $157,000. 2.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Central Puerto

Central Puerto SA engages in the electric power generation in Argentina. It operates through three segments: Electric Power Generation from Conventional Sources, Electric Power Generation from Renewable Sources, and Natural Gas Transport and Distribution. The company generates energy through thermal, hydroelectric, and wind farms.