Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Cuts Stock Holdings in Sempra Energy $SRE

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise reduced its stake in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 49.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,598 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 6,364 shares during the period. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $594,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of SRE. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Sempra Energy by 52.5% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 18,008 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,285,000 after purchasing an additional 6,196 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP grew its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 53,512 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,819,000 after buying an additional 15,474 shares in the last quarter. Ignite Planners LLC increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 3.1% during the second quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 12,396 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $970,000 after buying an additional 371 shares during the period. Savant Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 4.1% during the second quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 8,743 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $662,000 after buying an additional 344 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Sempra Energy by 2.6% in the second quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 11,694 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $886,000 after acquiring an additional 292 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sempra Energy news, CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 4,872 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.58, for a total value of $451,049.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 39,029 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,613,304.82. The trade was a 11.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Cynthia J. Warner bought 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $92.95 per share, for a total transaction of $232,375.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 11,275 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,048,011.25. The trade was a 28.49% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $93.15 on Friday. Sempra Energy has a 12 month low of $61.90 and a 12 month high of $97.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.75, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.57. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $90.63 and its 200 day moving average price is $89.48.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.16. The company had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.82 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 13.27% and a return on equity of 8.22%. Sempra Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.50 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.6575 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 19th. This represents a $2.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from Sempra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 93.48%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on SRE. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $99.00 price target (up from $80.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Monday, November 24th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $101.00 price objective on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Argus raised Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $100.00 price target (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Friday, March 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.00.

About Sempra Energy

Sempra Energy is a San Diego–based energy infrastructure company that develops, owns and operates businesses delivering electricity and natural gas. Its operations include regulated utility services that provide electric and gas distribution to residential, commercial and industrial customers, as well as non‑regulated infrastructure businesses that develop and manage large-scale energy assets.

The company’s product and service portfolio spans electricity and natural gas delivery, transmission and storage, liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, power generation and electric transmission projects.