Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Receives Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) has earned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen research firms that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month target price among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $82.3333.

SRE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Barclays upped their target price on Sempra Energy from $71.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price objective (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, May 12th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total value of $419,399.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 39,380 shares in the company, valued at $3,229,553.80. This trade represents a 11.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $126,080.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 15,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,248,000. The trade was a 9.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 173,408 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $12,374,000 after acquiring an additional 13,433 shares during the period. Carrera Capital Advisors raised its position in Sempra Energy by 8.0% in the first quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors now owns 49,570 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,569,000 after purchasing an additional 3,677 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 171.2% during the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 11,107 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $793,000 after purchasing an additional 7,012 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy in the first quarter worth about $483,000. Finally, Lee Danner & Bass Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 81.0% in the first quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. now owns 46,277 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,302,000 after buying an additional 20,707 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sempra Energy Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SRE opened at $82.12 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $79.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The company has a market cap of $53.58 billion, a PE ratio of 19.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.65. Sempra Energy has a 12 month low of $61.90 and a 12 month high of $95.77.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. Sempra Energy’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.89 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

About Sempra Energy

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.