Sempra Energy $SRE Shares Sold by Brookstone Capital Management

Brookstone Capital Management cut its stake in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 12.3% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,920 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 411 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $221,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 2.2% in the second quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC now owns 5,999 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $458,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 8,169 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $583,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 0.6% during the 2nd quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 25,370 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,922,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Pingora Partners LLC boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 48.3% during the 1st quarter. Pingora Partners LLC now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 2,988 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $211,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SRE opened at $92.65 on Wednesday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $86.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.15. The company has a market cap of $60.45 billion, a PE ratio of 22.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.66. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Sempra Energy has a 1-year low of $61.90 and a 1-year high of $95.77.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.35 billion. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.42% and a net margin of 20.28%.Sempra Energy’s revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.89 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st were given a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.32%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Kevin C. Sagara sold 28,864 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, September 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.21, for a total value of $2,430,637.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 15,475 shares in the company, valued at $1,303,149.75. This trade represents a 65.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total value of $419,399.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 39,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,229,553.80. The trade was a 11.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 48,411 shares of company stock valued at $4,141,790. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SRE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. BTIG Research upgraded shares of Sempra Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $99.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $86.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price target on Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Sempra Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.00.

Sempra Energy 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.