Sempra Energy $SRE Shares Sold by AIA Group Ltd

AIA Group Ltd reduced its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 29.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 61,483 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 25,272 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $5,532,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 19.4% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 85,334 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,678,000 after acquiring an additional 13,864 shares during the last quarter. Westerkirk Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the second quarter valued at about $3,091,000. Amundi raised its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 20.8% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 1,903,624 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $142,429,000 after purchasing an additional 327,154 shares during the last quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ raised its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 5.7% in the 3rd quarter. Lansforsakringar Fondforvaltning AB publ now owns 203,402 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $18,302,000 after purchasing an additional 11,020 shares during the last quarter. Finally, ANTIPODES PARTNERS Ltd acquired a new stake in Sempra Energy in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $150,993,000. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on SRE shares. Argus upgraded shares of Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $101.00 price objective on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Friday, February 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on Sempra Energy from $98.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $100.55.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 0.9%

SRE stock opened at $95.06 on Thursday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $91.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $89.91. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $61.90 and a 52-week high of $97.44. The firm has a market cap of $62.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.44, a PEG ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.73.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.82 billion. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.22% and a net margin of 13.27%.Sempra Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.50 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 19th will be issued a $0.6575 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 19th. This is an increase from Sempra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.63 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 93.48%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 4,872 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.58, for a total value of $451,049.76. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 39,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,613,304.82. This trade represents a 11.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard J. Mark purchased 2,692 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $93.30 per share, with a total value of $251,163.60. Following the acquisition, the director owned 17,376 shares in the company, valued at $1,621,180.80. This represents a 18.33% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders bought 6,192 shares of company stock valued at $576,979. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.