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

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fourteen research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and eight have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $80.62.

SRE has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim reduced their price target on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Citigroup lowered their target price on Sempra from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Sempra from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. UBS Group cut Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th.

Sempra Trading Up 1.5%

NYSE:SRE opened at $78.85 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Sempra has a 1-year low of $61.90 and a 1-year high of $95.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.37, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.63. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $72.61 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $79.84.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.12. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.34 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 26th. Sempra’s payout ratio is 56.70%.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In related news, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total transaction of $595,193.90. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,260,117.94. This trade represents a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Cynthia J. Warner acquired 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $70.65 per share, with a total value of $49,455.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 8,759 shares in the company, valued at approximately $618,823.35. This represents a 8.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 9,319 shares of company stock worth $651,676. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in SRE. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Sempra during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sempra in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Sempra in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC raised its stake in Sempra by 265.2% in the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Sempra

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.