Morgan Stanley Has Lowered Expectations for Spire (NYSE:SR) Stock Price

Spire (NYSE:SR) had its target price cut by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $77.00 to $75.00 in a research note issued on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “equal weight” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s target price would suggest a potential upside of 3.38% from the stock’s previous close.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on SR. Mizuho lifted their price target on Spire from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut shares of Spire from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $65.50 to $60.50 in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Spire from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. StockNews.com cut shares of Spire from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Spire from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Spire has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $68.06.

Spire Trading Up 2.7 %

Shares of Spire stock opened at $72.55 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Spire has a twelve month low of $56.36 and a twelve month high of $72.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.19 billion, a PE ratio of 16.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.13 and a beta of 0.52. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $65.87 and its 200 day moving average price is $63.84.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Spire by 26.8% during the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 761 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its holdings in Spire by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,572 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $240,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Creative Planning increased its holdings in Spire by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,126 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $480,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co raised its position in Spire by 28.6% in the third quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Spire by 4.5% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,327 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Spire Company Profile

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.