OFI Invest Asset Management Purchases Shares of 510 Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 510 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $43,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SRE. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sempra by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 5,871 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $491,000 after purchasing an additional 589 shares during the period. SpiderRock Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Sempra by 4.8% in the third quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC now owns 10,253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $857,000 after acquiring an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc increased its position in shares of Sempra by 6.4% in the third quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 47,986 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,013,000 after acquiring an additional 2,888 shares during the last quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Sempra by 56.6% in the third quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 24,923 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,084,000 after acquiring an additional 9,012 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Sempra by 2.4% in the third quarter. Legacy Capital Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,149 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $598,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $69.47 on Tuesday. Sempra has a 12-month low of $64.89 and a 12-month high of $95.77. The stock has a market cap of $45.26 billion, a PE ratio of 15.30, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a 50 day moving average of $81.06 and a 200-day moving average of $84.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.03. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The company had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This is a boost from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Sempra’s payout ratio is currently 58.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group downgraded Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “hold” rating and issued a $77.00 target price (down previously from $96.00) on shares of Sempra in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Sempra from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $99.00 to $76.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $81.50.

Insider Transactions at Sempra

In related news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total value of $4,125,186.78. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares in the company, valued at approximately $165.88. The trade was a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Cynthia J. Warner purchased 700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $70.65 per share, with a total value of $49,455.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 8,759 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $618,823.35. This trade represents a 8.69 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.