Spire (NYSE:SR) Rating Increased to Hold at StockNews.com

Spire (NYSE:SR) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday.

SR has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Spire from $70.00 to $69.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Bank of America assumed coverage on Spire in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho raised Spire from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $65.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Spire from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on shares of Spire in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $73.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $71.50.

Spire Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE:SR opened at $66.65 on Tuesday. Spire has a 12-month low of $56.36 and a 12-month high of $73.64. The business has a 50 day moving average of $67.49 and a 200-day moving average of $65.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.30, a current ratio of 0.45 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The stock has a market cap of $3.85 billion, a PE ratio of 15.46, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.57.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.47, for a total transaction of $77,590.50. Following the transaction, the treasurer now owns 2,587 shares in the company, valued at $174,544.89. The trade was a 30.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Paul D. Koonce purchased 1,000 shares of Spire stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $73.61 per share, with a total value of $73,610.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,425 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $178,504.25. This trade represents a 70.18 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 2.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Spire

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of SR. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Spire during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Spire during the second quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its holdings in Spire by 1,318.4% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 539 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 501 shares in the last quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co raised its position in Spire by 28.6% in the 3rd quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $61,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Spire by 38.9% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,057 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $71,000 after acquiring an additional 296 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Spire

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.