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NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- El Paso Electric (EE) - Get Report has been downgraded by TheStreet Ratings from Buy to Hold with a ratings score of C+.  TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation:

TheStreet Ratings team rates EL PASO ELECTRIC CO as a Hold with a ratings score of C+. TheStreet Ratings Team has this to say about their recommendation:

"We rate EL PASO ELECTRIC CO (EE) a HOLD. The primary factors that have impacted our rating are mixed some indicating strength, some showing weaknesses, with little evidence to justify the expectation of either a positive or negative performance for this stock relative to most other stocks. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its increase in net income, revenue growth and good cash flow from operations. However, as a counter to these strengths, we also find weaknesses including generally higher debt management risk, disappointing return on equity and poor profit margins."

Highlights from the analysis by TheStreet Ratings Team goes as follows:

• The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has significantly exceeded that of the S&P 500 and the Electric Utilities industry. The net income increased by 256.1% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, rising from $1.19 million to $4.24 million.
• Despite its growing revenue, the company underperformed as compared with the industry average of 11.9%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly increased by 3.3%. This growth in revenue appears to have trickled down to the company's bottom line, improving the earnings per share.
• EL PASO ELECTRIC CO reported significant earnings per share improvement in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. The company has demonstrated a pattern of positive earnings per share growth over the past year. However, we anticipate underperformance relative to this pattern in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, EL PASO ELECTRIC CO increased its bottom line by earning $2.26 versus $2.20 in the prior year. For the next year, the market is expecting a contraction of 11.5% in earnings ($2.00 versus $2.26).
• The company's current return on equity has slightly decreased from the same quarter one year prior. This implies a minor weakness in the organization. Compared to other companies in the Electric Utilities industry and the overall market on the basis of return on equity, EL PASO ELECTRIC CO has outperformed in comparison with the industry average, but has underperformed when compared to that of the S&P 500.
• The debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18 is relatively high when compared with the industry average, suggesting a need for better debt level management.
• You can view the full analysis from the report here: EE Ratings Report