MML Investors Services LLC Buys 2,156 Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

MML Investors Services LLC boosted its position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 4.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 47,397 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 2,156 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC’s holdings in Sempra were worth $3,964,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its position in shares of Sempra by 4.4% during the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 25,647 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,951,000 after purchasing an additional 1,084 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in Sempra by 2.7% during the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 15,111 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,149,000 after buying an additional 397 shares during the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Sempra by 165.2% in the second quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,896 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $208,000 after buying an additional 1,804 shares in the last quarter. TCW Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Sempra by 28.2% during the second quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 67,765 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $5,154,000 after buying an additional 14,890 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its position in shares of Sempra by 21.5% during the second quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,180,886 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $89,818,000 after acquiring an additional 209,158 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In related news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 23,713 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.09, for a total value of $2,207,443.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,041,677.10. The trade was a 67.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sempra Stock Performance

NYSE SRE opened at $89.17 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $56.48 billion, a PE ratio of 19.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.52. Sempra has a 52-week low of $66.40 and a 52-week high of $95.77. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $88.08 and a 200 day simple moving average of $82.15.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.16). Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The company had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.54 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.08 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.78%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SRE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Sempra in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Sempra in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of Sempra from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $85.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Friday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $91.60.

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.