Clearway Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CWEN) Short Interest Up 27.7% in February

Clearway Energy, Inc. (NYSE:CWEN) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of February. As of February 27th, there was short interest totaling 6,435,824 shares, a growth of 27.7% from the February 12th total of 5,039,496 shares. Approximately 3.2% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 1,150,318 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.6 days. Based on an average daily volume of 1,150,318 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.6 days. Approximately 3.2% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Clearway Energy Price Performance

NYSE:CWEN traded up $0.21 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $38.23. 814,777 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 961,604. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $37.06 and a 200 day moving average price of $33.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $7.85 billion, a PE ratio of 26.91, a PEG ratio of 1.66 and a beta of 0.95. Clearway Energy has a 1-year low of $25.63 and a 1-year high of $41.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.36.

Clearway Energy (NYSE:CWEN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 23rd. The company reported ($0.89) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.21) by ($0.68). Clearway Energy had a net margin of 11.83% and a return on equity of 3.01%. The business had revenue of $310.00 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $334.42 million. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted ($0.41) earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Clearway Energy will post 0.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Clearway Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Investors of record on Monday, March 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.4602 per share. This is a boost from Clearway Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. Clearway Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 129.58%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CWEN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Roth Mkm restated a “buy” rating and set a $45.00 price objective (up from $40.00) on shares of Clearway Energy in a research note on Tuesday, February 24th. UBS Group set a $45.00 target price on shares of Clearway Energy in a research report on Tuesday, February 24th. Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce raised shares of Clearway Energy from a “neutral” rating to a “sector outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $37.00 to $38.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 16th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Clearway Energy in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Clearway Energy from $38.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $40.14.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Clearway Energy by 26.7% during the 4th quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 4,656,937 shares of the company’s stock valued at $154,890,000 after acquiring an additional 981,488 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Clearway Energy by 3.7% in the 2nd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,171,301 shares of the company’s stock worth $69,482,000 after acquiring an additional 77,595 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Clearway Energy by 20.1% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 837,006 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,839,000 after purchasing an additional 140,006 shares during the period. RWC Asset Management LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Clearway Energy by 12.2% during the third quarter. RWC Asset Management LLP now owns 745,537 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,061,000 after purchasing an additional 81,349 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Clearway Energy during the fourth quarter valued at $21,906,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.53% of the company’s stock.

About Clearway Energy

Clearway Energy Group (NYSE: CWEN) is a U.S.-based energy company specializing in the ownership, operation and development of clean and conventional power generation assets. The company’s portfolio spans utility-scale wind and solar farms, biogas and natural gas-fired thermal facilities, as well as distributed generation projects such as rooftop solar and energy storage. Clearway’s generation assets are largely underpinned by long-term power purchase agreements and service contracts with creditworthy counterparties, enabling stable, predictable cash flows.

Originally launched in 2013 as NRG Yield and rebranded to Clearway Energy in 2018 following a strategic sponsorship change, the business has grown into one of the largest independent renewable energy platforms in the United States.