Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Bought by Cerity Partners LLC

Cerity Partners LLC increased its position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 15.2% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 94,030 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 12,398 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Sempra were worth $7,032,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Sempra by 0.6% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,141,824 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $191,963,000 after acquiring an additional 6,246 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 780.0% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,804 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $302,000 after purchasing an additional 1,599 shares during the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra in the first quarter valued at $782,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in Sempra by 3.6% in the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 668,646 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $112,411,000 after purchasing an additional 23,431 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. increased its stake in Sempra by 77.4% in the first quarter. Vontobel Holding Ltd. now owns 13,575 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,276,000 after purchasing an additional 5,924 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Sempra news, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 5,063 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.22, for a total value of $360,586.86. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,403,888.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 34,190 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.83, for a total transaction of $2,421,677.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2 shares in the company, valued at $141.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 5,063 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.22, for a total transaction of $360,586.86. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,712 shares in the company, valued at $1,403,888.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 156,622 shares of company stock valued at $11,089,713. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $68.11 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $43.06 billion, a PE ratio of 14.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $71.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. Sempra has a 12-month low of $63.75 and a 12-month high of $79.51.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.02. Sempra had a net margin of 18.26% and a return on equity of 9.45%. The company had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.17 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were given a $0.62 dividend. This is an increase from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.64%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 20th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have issued reports on the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on Sempra in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $81.50 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Sempra from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Sempra from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Sempra in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Sempra from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.14.

Sempra Company 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.