Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) have received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the eleven analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $89.00.

SRE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Sempra from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Sempra in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $98.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Sempra from $87.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st.

Sempra Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of SRE stock opened at $91.25 on Friday. Sempra has a 52-week low of $66.40 and a 52-week high of $91.88. The stock has a market cap of $57.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.10, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.75. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $83.60 and its 200-day moving average is $79.21. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.52.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.06 by ($0.17). Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.01%. The business had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. Sempra’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.77 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. Sempra’s payout ratio is currently 54.63%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sempra

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new stake in Sempra in the first quarter valued at about $815,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 12.1% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 24,563 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,764,000 after purchasing an additional 2,645 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sempra by 24.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 9,896 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $711,000 after purchasing an additional 1,970 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC increased its position in Sempra by 249.9% during the 1st quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 155,854 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $11,195,000 after purchasing an additional 111,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Forsta AP Fonden lifted its stake in Sempra by 13.7% in the 1st quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 117,200 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,418,000 after purchasing an additional 14,100 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.