Brookstone Capital Management Purchases 220 Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Brookstone Capital Management increased its position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 7.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,038 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management’s holdings in Sempra were worth $218,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Crestline Management LP grew its stake in shares of Sempra by 14.0% in the 4th quarter. Crestline Management LP now owns 119,174 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,906,000 after purchasing an additional 14,674 shares during the period. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd raised its stake in Sempra by 13.5% during the fourth quarter. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd now owns 172,129 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $12,863,000 after acquiring an additional 20,469 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 932.2% during the fourth quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 43,848 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,277,000 after acquiring an additional 39,600 shares during the period. CUSHING ASSET MANAGEMENT LP dba NXG INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at $9,715,000. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its holdings in shares of Sempra by 14.4% in the 4th quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 41,202 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,079,000 after purchasing an additional 5,197 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SRE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Sempra from $79.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Mizuho increased their price target on Sempra from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut their price objective on Sempra from $81.50 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley decreased 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. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on Sempra from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sempra has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $82.10.

Sempra Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $75.18 on Thursday. 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 1-year low of $63.75 and a 1-year high of $78.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $75.36 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $72.98.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 EPS 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 business had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 44.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 27th will be paid a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 27th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.93%.

Insider Transactions at Sempra

In other Sempra news, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 6,100 shares of the 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 owns 14,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,107,357.57. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Sempra 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 sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 14,751 shares in the company, valued at $1,107,357.57. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Richard J. Mark purchased 1,925 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $77.97 per share, for a total transaction of $150,092.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 5,420 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $422,597.40. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sempra 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.