Contact Energy Limited (CEN.NZ) stock analysis
In our weekly check, Contact Energy Limited is graded B (A to F). Of 25 checks on debt, profit, cash flow and trend: 17 pass, warnings: 4, red flags: 4.
About Contact Energy Limited
Contact Energy Limited is an Utilities company (Renewable Utilities), listed on NZE as CEN.NZ.
What our checks show for CEN.NZ
Red flags
- The gross margin fell by 7.2 points, to 28.1%: costs are rising faster than prices.
- The dividend takes 112% of profit: little cushion if profit falls.
- Recovering from its deepest fall took about 4.1 years.
- The share count grew by 29.5% in 2 years: each shareholder owns a smaller slice.
Warning signs
- Operating profit covers interest only 2.6 times: a weak year could make the payments hard.
- Analysts expect only about 4.4% a year of growth in revenue.
- The stock has fallen as much as 54% from a peak. Would you have held through that?
- Return on capital (ROCE) is only 9%.
Strengths
- The net margin rose by 5.5 points over 5 years, to 13.2%.
- Operating cash flow is 1.87x net profit: the profit arrives as real cash.
- Revenue grew 15.1% a year over the last 3 years.
- Earnings per share grew 37.9% a year over the last 3 years.
- Net profit grew 49.3% a year over the last 3 years.
- The price moves calmly: 19.5% annual volatility.
Similar companies
ENLT · BEP · CWEN · EDPR.LS · MEL.NZ · ORA
Questions
What grade does Contact Energy Limited (CEN.NZ) have?
In our weekly check, Contact Energy Limited is graded B (A to F). Of 25 checks on debt, profit, cash flow and trend: 17 pass, warnings: 4, red flags: 4. The grade is a risk check, not a buy or sell recommendation.
What are the main risks of CEN.NZ stock?
This week's biggest flags for Contact Energy Limited: Gross margin falling, Dividend stretched, Slow recovery after falls. In total 8 of 25 checks show a warning or a red flag.
What does Contact Energy Limited do?
Contact Energy Limited is an Utilities company (Renewable Utilities), listed on NZE as CEN.NZ.
The grade is a risk check, not a price forecast, and not investment advice. In our 10-year test (S&P 500, 2016-2026), stocks we graded A or B fell more than 30% 2-3 times less often than D or F, without a lower average return.
Updated 2026-10-31
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