Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Acquired by Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 12.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 123,275 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,986 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in Sempra were worth $8,855,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Federated Hermes Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Sempra by 26.1% in the 3rd quarter. Federated Hermes Inc. now owns 1,890 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 391 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Sempra by 118.6% during the 3rd quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 15,020 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,022,000 after acquiring an additional 8,149 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 85.1% during the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 5,321 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $362,000 after acquiring an additional 2,447 shares in the last quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sempra by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 34,042 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,316,000 after acquiring an additional 17,021 shares during the period. Finally, Gotham Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Sempra in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $494,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In other news, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 6,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total value of $457,927.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 14,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,107,357.57. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 6,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total value of $457,927.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 14,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,107,357.57. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Richard J. Mark bought 1,925 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $77.97 per share, for a total transaction of $150,092.25. Following the purchase, the director now owns 5,420 shares in the company, valued at approximately $422,597.40. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Sempra Stock Performance

NYSE SRE opened at $76.06 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $75.22 and its 200 day moving average price is $73.02. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. Sempra has a twelve month low of $63.75 and a twelve month high of $78.83. The company has a market capitalization of $47.93 billion, a PE ratio of 16.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.74.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.01). Sempra had a return on equity of 8.95% and a net margin of 20.99%. The company had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.58 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 44.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 27th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.26%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 27th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on SRE shares. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Sempra from $79.00 to $76.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, June 24th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of Sempra in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Mizuho upped their price target on shares of Sempra from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH dropped their price objective on shares of Sempra from $81.50 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Sempra from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sempra presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $82.10.

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.