Zacks: Analysts Anticipate Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Will Announce Quarterly Sales of $3.04 Billion

Wall Street analysts expect that Sempra (NYSE:SRE – Get Rating) will announce sales of $3.04 billion for the current fiscal quarter, according to Zacks Investment Research. Three analysts have made estimates for Sempra’s earnings. The lowest sales estimate is $2.95 billion and the highest is $3.10 billion. Sempra reported sales of $2.74 billion during the same quarter last year, which indicates a positive year over year growth rate of 10.9%. The company is expected to announce its next earnings report on Monday, January 1st.

According to Zacks, analysts expect that Sempra will report full year sales of $13.35 billion for the current financial year, with estimates ranging from $13.07 billion to $13.53 billion. For the next financial year, analysts expect that the business will post sales of $13.96 billion, with estimates ranging from $13.69 billion to $14.20 billion. Zacks Investment Research’s sales averages are an average based on a survey of sell-side analysts that that provide coverage for Sempra.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE – Get Rating) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 5th. The utilities provider reported $2.91 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.86 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.83 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.35 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 10.96% and a net margin of 8.44%. Sempra’s revenue was up 17.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.95 earnings per share.

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Sempra from $142.00 to $171.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 28th. Credit Suisse Group initiated coverage on Sempra in a report on Monday, April 25th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $180.00 target price on the stock. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Sempra in a report on Thursday, March 31st. They set a “hold” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Sempra from $168.00 to $164.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, Mizuho raised their target price on Sempra from $148.00 to $174.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 30th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sempra presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $159.67.

SRE opened at $166.74 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $52.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 52.60, a PEG ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.62. Sempra has a 1 year low of $119.56 and a 1 year high of $173.28. The company has a current ratio of 0.72, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.92. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $164.46 and a 200 day moving average price of $144.64.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 7th will be paid a $1.145 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 6th. This represents a $4.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.75%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 144.48%.

In other news, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 2,559 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.45, for a total transaction of $369,647.55. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 30,796 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $162.23, for a total value of $4,996,035.08. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. PrairieView Partners LLC bought a new stake in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sempra by 1,763.6% during the 4th quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 205 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 194 shares during the last quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sempra by 54.8% in the third quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 240 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 85 shares during the last quarter. Herold Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 1st quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Kings Point Capital Management boosted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 70.8% during the 1st quarter. Kings Point Capital Management now owns 205 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 85 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 86.06% of the company’s stock.

About Sempra (Get Rating)

Sempra operates as an energy-services holding company in the United States and internationally. The company's San Diego Gas & Electric Company segment provides electric services; and supplies natural gas. It offers electric services to approximately 3.6 million population and natural gas services to approximately 3.3 million population that covers 4,100 square miles.

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