Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Bought by Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC

Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC grew its stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 9.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 10,988 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 917 shares during the period. Kestra Private Wealth Services LLC’s holdings in Sempra were worth $821,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Monetary Management Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sempra by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sempra by 100.0% in the third quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 390 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. Wolverine Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sempra by 100.0% in the third quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Sempra by 85.6% in the third quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 412 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Sempra from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Sempra from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 14th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Sempra from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a report on Thursday, January 11th. Mizuho reduced their price target on shares of Sempra from $83.00 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $82.00 price target on shares of Sempra in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.14.

Sempra Price Performance

Sempra stock opened at $72.92 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.54. The company has a market cap of $46.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.22, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.70. Sempra has a 1 year low of $63.75 and a 1 year high of $78.70. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $70.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $71.78.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.02. Sempra had a net margin of 18.26% and a return on equity of 9.45%. The company had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.17 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were paid a $0.62 dividend. This is a positive change from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 20th. Sempra’s payout ratio is currently 51.77%.

Insider Transactions at Sempra

In related news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 50,703 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.92, for a total value of $3,595,856.76. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2 shares in the company, valued at $141.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 57,571 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.59, for a total transaction of $4,063,936.89. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 10,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $770,983.98. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 50,703 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.92, for a total value of $3,595,856.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares in the company, valued at $141.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 122,432 shares of company stock worth $8,668,035. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.