Algert Global LLC Makes New Investment in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Algert Global LLC bought a new stake in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) in the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm bought 5,541 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $337,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Spire in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. LRI Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Spire during the 1st quarter worth $35,000. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spire in the 1st quarter worth about $37,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Spire in the 1st quarter valued at about $47,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its holdings in Spire by 26.8% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 761 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Spire Stock Up 0.4 %

SR stock opened at $64.49 on Wednesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $65.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $62.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a current ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.29, a PEG ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.52. Spire Inc. has a one year low of $54.15 and a one year high of $68.02.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The utilities provider reported ($0.14) EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.18) by $0.04. Spire had a return on equity of 8.10% and a net margin of 9.40%. The business had revenue of $414.10 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $313.86 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.42) earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Spire Inc. will post 4.23 EPS for the current year.

Spire Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Wednesday, September 11th were given a $0.755 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, September 11th. This represents a $3.02 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.68%. Spire’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.26%.

Insider Activity at Spire

In other Spire news, VP Gerard J. Gorla sold 500 shares of Spire stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total value of $32,410.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,311 shares in the company, valued at $473,899.02. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, VP Gerard J. Gorla sold 500 shares of Spire stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total value of $32,410.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,311 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $473,899.02. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Maria V. Fogarty sold 6,590 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.15, for a total value of $429,338.50. Following the sale, the director now owns 9,800 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $638,470. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.86% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on SR. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Spire from $70.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Spire from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $63.83.

Spire Profile

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.