Citigroup Inc. Decreases Stake in Sempra Energy $SRE

Citigroup Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,790,030 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 69,023 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. owned 0.27% of Sempra Energy worth $161,067,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SRE. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Sempra Energy by 51.2% during the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 375 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 245.1% in the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the period. Hartford Funds Management Co LLC acquired a new position in Sempra Energy in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 74.6% during the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 391 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on SRE shares. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $101.00 price objective on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $99.00 target price (up from $80.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Monday, November 24th. Finally, Barclays set a $95.00 target price on Sempra Energy and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $96.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sempra Energy news, CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 7,564 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.29, for a total value of $698,081.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 41,280 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,809,731.20. The trade was a 15.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

Sempra Energy stock opened at $93.48 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.01 billion, a PE ratio of 28.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.74. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $88.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $88.32. Sempra Energy has a 12 month low of $61.90 and a 12 month high of $95.74.

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.