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CenterPoint Energy to Report Q1 Earnings: What's in the Cards?

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Key Takeaways

  • CNP's infrastructure upgrades and grid hardening likely improved reliability and efficiency.
  • Rising industrial demand, data center growth and electrification efforts likely supported revenues.
  • Warmer weather and higher interest and financing costs may have pressured demand and margins.

CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (CNP - Free Report) is slated to report first-quarter 2026 results on April 23, 2026, before market open. The company delivered a negative earnings surprise of 2.17% in the last reported quarter.

Let’s discuss the factors that are likely to be reflected in the upcoming quarterly results.

Factors to Consider Ahead of CNP’s Q1 Results

Increased capital spending by CenterPoint Energy has likely reinforced its infrastructure base and strengthened service reliability. Ongoing initiatives, including system upgrades, equipment modernization and grid hardening efforts, have reduced outage durations and improved operational efficiency. These advancements are expected to favorably impact the company’s first-quarter results.

Rising demand from industrial customers, along with expanding data center operations and transportation electrification initiatives, is likely to have supported the company’s overall revenues in the soon-to-be-reported quarter.

Profitable returns from earlier investments, along with strong sales growth expectations, are likely to have strengthened CenterPoint Energy’s overall earnings performance.

The majority of CNP’s service territories experienced warmer-than-normal temperature patterns for most of the first quarter. Such a weather pattern is expected to have hurt electricity demand for heating purposes this winter, which is likely to have weighed on the company’s top-line performance.

Higher interest expenses and financing costs are likely to have offset some of the positives in the first quarter.

CenterPoint Energy, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

CenterPoint Energy, Inc. Price and EPS Surprise

CenterPoint Energy, Inc. price-eps-surprise | CenterPoint Energy, Inc. Quote

Q1 Expectations for CNP

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at 61 cents per share, indicating a year-over-year increase of 15.1%.

The consensus estimate for revenues is pinned at $3.05 billion, implying a 4.6% improvement year over year.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the total electric throughput stands at 25,120 gigawatt-hours, up 1.5% from the figure registered in the year-ago quarter.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for total natural gas throughput is pinned at 271 billion cubic feet, up 1.5% year over year.

What the Zacks Model Unveils for CNP

Our proven model predicts an earnings beat for CenterPoint Energy this time. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the odds of an earnings beat, which is the case here, as you will see below.

Earnings ESP: CNP has an Earnings ESP of +1.64%. You can uncover the best stocks before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Zacks Rank: Currently, CenterPoint Energy carries a Zacks Rank of 2. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Other Stocks to Consider

Investors may consider the following players from the same industry, as these also have the right combination of elements to post an earnings beat this reporting cycle.

CMS Energy (CMS - Free Report) is slated to report its first-quarter 2026 results on April 28, before market open. It has an Earnings ESP of +10.35% and a Zacks Rank of 2 at present.

CMS’ long-term (three to five years) earnings growth rate is 7.3%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings is pegged at $1.16 per share, which suggests a year-over-year rise of 13.7%.

Alliant Energy (LNT - Free Report) is slated to report its first-quarter 2026 results on April 30, after market close. It has an Earnings ESP of +1.21% and a Zacks Rank of 2 at present.

LNT’s long-term earnings growth rate is 7.2%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings stands at 83 cents per share.

Consolidated Edison (ED - Free Report) is scheduled to report its first-quarter 2026 results on May 7, after market close. It has an Earnings ESP of +0.08% and a Zacks Rank of 2 at present.

ED’s long-term earnings growth rate is 6.5%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for earnings stands at $2.39 per share, which implies a year-over-year increase of 6.2%.

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