Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Director Acquires $184,496.00 in Stock

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Director Pablo Ferrero bought 2,600 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $70.96 per share, with a total value of $184,496.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 15,649 shares in the company, valued at $1,110,453.04. This trade represents a 19.92 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website.

Sempra Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $71.06 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The business’s 50 day moving average is $78.80 and its 200 day moving average is $83.75. The stock has a market cap of $46.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76. Sempra has a 52-week low of $64.89 and a 52-week high of $95.77.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. Sempra’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a $0.645 dividend. This is an increase from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is 58.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SRE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays lowered shares of Sempra from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $72.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group lowered shares of Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Sempra from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price objective on Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.50.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sempra

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its stake in Sempra by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 107,800 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $9,015,000 after buying an additional 7,198 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of Sempra by 9.7% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,744 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $899,000 after purchasing an additional 951 shares during the last quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Sempra by 35.7% in the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 594,683 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $49,733,000 after acquiring an additional 156,397 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its stake in shares of Sempra by 6.8% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 31,674 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,649,000 after buying an additional 2,010 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swiss National Bank grew its position in Sempra by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 1,878,400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $157,091,000 after acquiring an additional 6,700 shares in 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.