CenterPoint Energy, Inc. (CNP) reported that on May 15, 2026, it entered into a new Equity Distribution Agreement establishing an at-the-market equity offering program for up to $1.0 billion of its common stock, par value $0.01 per share. The agreement allows CenterPoint to sell shares from time to time through a broad syndicate of sales agents and forward-sale counterparties, rather than through a single underwritten public offering. The new program replaces CenterPoint’s prior at-the-market program under an equity distribution agreement dated January 10, 2024. Upon entering the new agreement, the company terminated that earlier program. At the time of termination, approximately $84.9 million of common stock remained unsold under the prior authorization. Under the new agreement, CenterPoint may sell common shares through managers including Barclays Capital, BMO Capital Markets, BNP Paribas Securities, BofA Securities, BTIG, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, J.P. Morgan, Mizuho, Morgan Stanley, MUFG, RBC Capital Markets, Scotia Capital, TD Securities, Truist Securities and Wells Fargo Securities. Sales may be made in ordinary broker transactions on the New York Stock Exchange or NYSE Texas, through market makers or electronic communications networks, at prevailing market prices or prices related to prevailing market prices. The company and the agents may also agree to other methods, including privately negotiated or block transactions. Each manager may receive a commission of up to 1% of the gross sales price per share sold. The agreement also includes a forward-sale structure. CenterPoint may enter into one or more forward sale agreements with designated forward purchasers, including major banking affiliates such as Barclays Bank, Bank of Montreal, BNP Paribas, Bank of America, Citibank, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase Bank, Mizuho Markets Americas, Morgan Stanley, MUFG Securities EMEA, Royal Bank of Canada, The Bank of Nova Scotia, The Toronto-Dominion Bank, Truist Bank and Wells Fargo Bank, among others. In those transactions, a forward purchaser would borrow shares from third parties and sell them through an affiliated forward seller. The forward seller’s compensation would be reflected as a reduction to the initial forward sale price, also capped at up to 1% of the gross sales price of the borrowed shares sold during the hedge selling period. CenterPoint will not initially receive proceeds from borrowed shares sold by forward sellers. The company said it expects to fully physically settle any forward sale agreement by delivering shares on one or more dates it specifies before the applicable maturity date, in which case it would receive net cash proceeds based on the number of shares underlying the forward sale agreement multiplied by the applicable forward sale price. If CenterPoint instead elects cash settlement or net share settlement, it may receive no proceeds and could owe cash or shares to the forward purchaser. The total amount of common stock sold under the agreement, including direct sales through managers and forward-related sales through forward sellers, may not exceed $1.0 billion in aggregate gross sales price. CenterPoint is not obligated to sell any shares, and the managers and forward sellers are not required to sell any specific number of shares or dollar amount. The company may suspend sales at any time. The program will terminate upon the earliest of the sale of all shares covered by the agreement, termination by the parties, or May 15, 2029. CenterPoint said it expects to use net proceeds from any sales for general corporate purposes. Those purposes may include funding capital expenditure programs at its operating subsidiaries and repaying borrowings under its commercial paper program. The company noted that some of the managers, forward purchasers, forward sellers or their affiliates may hold CenterPoint commercial paper and therefore could receive a portion of the proceeds if commercial paper is repaid. The filing was made under Item 1.01, covering entry into a material definitive agreement, and Item 9.01, listing exhibits. The exhibits include the full Equity Distribution Agreement, the form of master forward confirmation, and a Baker Botts L.L.P. legal opinion regarding the validity of the shares. This was not an insider trading report, so it does not include Form 4 transaction codes, insider share ownership changes, option exercises, or vesting details.