Sempra (NYSE:SRE) is Maple Brown Abbott Ltd’s 8th Largest Position

Maple Brown Abbott Ltd trimmed its stake in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 35.3% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 711,320 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 388,010 shares during the period. Sempra makes up 7.6% of Maple Brown Abbott Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Maple Brown Abbott Ltd’s holdings in Sempra were worth $62,397,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of SRE. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in shares of Sempra during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Hollencrest Capital Management boosted its holdings in Sempra by 250.0% in the third quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 378 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its stake in Sempra by 225.6% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 433 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC raised its holdings in Sempra by 180.4% during the third quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 443 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mather Group LLC. lifted its position in shares of Sempra by 35.5% during the 3rd quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 740 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Sempra news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 23,713 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.09, for a total transaction of $2,207,443.17. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 11,190 shares in the company, valued at $1,041,677.10. This trade represents a 67.94 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Stock Down 0.0 %

SRE opened at $82.78 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $52.43 billion, a PE ratio of 18.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.10 and a beta of 0.78. 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 1 year low of $66.40 and a 1 year high of $95.77. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $87.72 and a 200 day moving average price of $84.16.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.54 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Sempra will post 4.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th were paid a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.00%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SRE has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley raised 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 report on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Sempra in a report on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.60.

Sempra 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.