Atria Investments Inc lowered its position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 9.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 43,581 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,405 shares during the period. Atria Investments Inc's holdings in Sempra were worth $3,823,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Sempra during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sempra in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Human Investing LLC bought a new position in Sempra during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Hollencrest Capital Management raised its stake in Sempra by 250.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 378 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its holdings 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 period. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
In other news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total transaction of $225,717.15. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,139,236.65. The trade was a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Cynthia J. Warner acquired 700 shares of the firm'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 acquisition, the director now directly owns 8,759 shares of the company's stock, valued at $618,823.35. This trade represents a 8.69 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.
Shares of SRE traded down $0.39 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $69.23. The company had a trading volume of 5,948,281 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,561,125. The company has a market capitalization of $45.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.25, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.52. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $81.42 and its 200 day simple moving average is $84.39. Sempra has a 1-year low of $64.89 and a 1-year high of $95.77.
Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.13 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.
The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This is an increase from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.73%. Sempra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.37%.
Several brokerages have recently commented on SRE. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Sempra from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the company from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $77.00 price target (down previously from $96.00) on shares of Sempra in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Sempra from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $81.50.
View Our Latest Stock Analysis on SRE
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.
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