UBS Group Has Lowered Expectations for Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Stock Price

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) had its price objective decreased by equities researchers at UBS Group from $98.00 to $92.00 in a note issued to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat reports. The firm currently has a “neutral” rating on the utilities provider’s stock. UBS Group’s price objective indicates a potential upside of 7.08% from the company’s current price.

SRE has been the subject of a number of other research reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Mizuho upped their price target on Sempra Energy from $86.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $89.00 price objective on Sempra Energy and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. BTIG Research upgraded Sempra Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $95.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sempra Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.83.

Sempra Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Sempra Energy stock opened at $85.92 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $56.08 billion, a PE ratio of 26.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a quick ratio of 1.56, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76. Sempra Energy has a 52 week low of $61.90 and a 52 week high of $95.72. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $89.60 and its 200-day simple moving average is $86.71.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.27. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.67% and a net margin of 15.63%.The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.89 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 4,322 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.55, for a total transaction of $400,001.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,325 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,048,128.75. The trade was a 27.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 7,564 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.29, for a total value of $698,081.56. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 41,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,809,731.20. This represents a 15.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 19,396 shares of company stock worth $1,785,606 over the last three months. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of SRE. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 73.5% during the 4th quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 14,680 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,296,000 after acquiring an additional 6,219 shares in the last quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in Sempra Energy by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 321,145 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,354,000 after buying an additional 15,676 shares during the last quarter. BSW Wealth Partners acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $212,000. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Sempra Energy by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 420,310 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $37,109,000 after purchasing an additional 4,594 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Third View Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter worth $3,384,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

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.