Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Short Interest Update

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,660,000 shares, a growth of 24.0% from the October 15th total of 11,820,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,640,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.6 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Sempra in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $94.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Sempra in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $98.00 price target for the company. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.00.

Sempra Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SRE traded up $1.75 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $92.19. The stock had a trading volume of 3,050,146 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,316,892. The company has a market capitalization of $58.39 billion, a PE ratio of 20.31, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.75. Sempra has a 1 year low of $66.40 and a 1 year high of $93.12. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $84.52 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $79.96. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.16). Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The business had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.63%.

Institutional Trading of Sempra

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Magnetar Financial LLC purchased a new position in Sempra in the first quarter valued at about $2,293,000. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd boosted its position in Sempra by 319.5% during the second quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 196,954 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,980,000 after purchasing an additional 150,000 shares in the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Sempra by 40.8% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 43,050 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,092,000 after purchasing an additional 12,468 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in shares of Sempra by 10.0% in the second quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 135,621 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $10,315,000 after buying an additional 12,346 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CreativeOne Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Sempra by 171.6% during the 1st quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 10,477 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $753,000 after buying an additional 6,620 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Company Profile

Sempra operates as an energy infrastructure company in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Sempra California, Sempra Texas Utilities, and Sempra Infrastructure. The Sempra California segment provides electric services; and natural gas services to San Diego County.