Brookfield Renewable Partners (NYSE:BEP) Trading Up 6.8% on Earnings Beat

Brookfield Renewable Partners L.P. (NYSE:BEP) (TSE:BEP) shares shot up 6.8% on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $22.01 and last traded at $22.11. 616,739 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 38% from the average session volume of 992,481 shares. The stock had previously closed at $20.70.

The utilities provider reported ($0.06) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.22) by $0.16. Brookfield Renewable Partners had a net margin of 1.16% and a return on equity of 0.24%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.01 EPS.

Brookfield Renewable Partners Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be paid a $0.373 dividend. This is a positive change from Brookfield Renewable Partners’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.36. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a $1.49 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.81%. Brookfield Renewable Partners’s dividend payout ratio is currently -173.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on BEP shares. CIBC boosted their target price on Brookfield Renewable Partners from $39.00 to $40.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Brookfield Renewable Partners from $30.00 to $28.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $31.00 target price on shares of Brookfield Renewable Partners in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Scotiabank decreased their price target on shares of Brookfield Renewable Partners from $32.00 to $28.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday. Finally, National Bankshares cut their price objective on shares of Brookfield Renewable Partners from $33.00 to $32.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $31.78.

Institutional Trading of Brookfield Renewable Partners

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Brookfield Renewable Partners by 23.8% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 8,472,170 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $192,605,000 after purchasing an additional 1,628,524 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Brookfield Renewable Partners by 3.2% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 7,851,842 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $178,943,000 after acquiring an additional 246,163 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can boosted its position in shares of Brookfield Renewable Partners by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 6,744,285 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $190,469,000 after acquiring an additional 26,189 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. increased its stake in Brookfield Renewable Partners by 4.4% in the fourth quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. now owns 2,751,587 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $62,647,000 after acquiring an additional 116,593 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CCLA Investment Management raised its position in Brookfield Renewable Partners by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. CCLA Investment Management now owns 2,627,972 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $59,838,000 after purchasing an additional 49,553 shares in the last quarter. 63.16% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Brookfield Renewable Partners Stock Up 5.8 %

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $23.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $24.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $6.24 billion, a P/E ratio of -26.70 and a beta of 0.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93.

Brookfield Renewable Partners Company Profile

Brookfield Renewable Partners L.P. owns a portfolio of renewable power generating facilities primarily in North America, Colombia, and Brazil. The company generates electricity through hydroelectric, wind, solar, distributed generation, and pumped storage, as well as renewable natural gas, carbon capture and storage, recycling, cogeneration biomass, nuclear services, and power transformation.