State of Alaska Department of Revenue Cuts Stock Position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

State of Alaska Department of Revenue cut its holdings in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 2.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 74,326 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 2,015 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Sempra were worth $5,338,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mechanics Bank Trust Department increased its position in Sempra by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Mechanics Bank Trust Department now owns 10,182 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $761,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 7.5% during the fourth quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc. now owns 2,081 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $156,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares during the period. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its stake in Sempra by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 38,190 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,854,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Sandy Spring Bank raised its stake in shares of Sempra by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Sandy Spring Bank now owns 18,610 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,391,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Presima Securities ULC boosted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. Presima Securities ULC now owns 5,550 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $415,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In related news, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 6,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,107,357.57. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Sempra news, Director Richard J. Mark purchased 1,925 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction on Friday, May 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $77.97 per share, with a total value of $150,092.25. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,420 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $422,597.40. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 6,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total transaction of $457,927.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 14,751 shares in the company, valued at $1,107,357.57. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Sempra Price Performance

NYSE SRE opened at $75.18 on Thursday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $75.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $72.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.74. 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 12-month low of $63.75 and a 12-month high of $78.83.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.58 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 44.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed 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 3.30%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 27th. Sempra’s payout ratio is currently 54.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Sempra from $79.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. Mizuho boosted 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. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Sempra from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH cut their price objective on shares of Sempra from $81.50 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Sempra from $79.00 to $76.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, June 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sempra has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.10.

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.