Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 33,449 Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,603,786 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 33,449 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.25% of Sempra worth $140,684,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Sempra in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Hollencrest Capital Management lifted its stake in Sempra by 250.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 378 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its stake in Sempra by 225.6% in the 4th 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. Finally, LRI Investments LLC lifted its stake in Sempra by 180.4% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 443 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Trading Up 0.6 %

SRE opened at $84.59 on Wednesday. Sempra has a twelve month low of $66.40 and a twelve month high of $95.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company has a fifty day moving average of $84.51 and a 200-day moving average of $84.72. The stock has a market cap of $53.58 billion, a PE ratio of 18.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.09 and a beta of 0.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Sempra from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $85.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on shares of Sempra in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $98.00 price target for the company. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Sempra from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.20.

Insider Transactions at Sempra

In other Sempra news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were 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. This trade represents a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total transaction of $225,717.15. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,139,236.65. The trade was a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.