Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Brokerages

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) has been given an average rating of “Buy” by the ten brokerages that are currently covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $91.60.

Several research firms have commented on SRE. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Sempra in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $98.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Sempra from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the stock from $85.00 to $98.00 in a research report on Friday, December 13th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Barclays raised their price objective on Sempra from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their price target on shares of Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 23,713 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.09, for a total transaction of $2,207,443.17. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 11,190 shares in the company, valued at $1,041,677.10. The trade was a 67.94 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sempra

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its stake in Sempra by 1.6% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,742 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $731,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI lifted its stake in Sempra by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. LVM Capital Management Ltd. MI now owns 6,677 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $586,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares in the last quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Sempra by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 46,518 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,890,000 after acquiring an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. CX Institutional increased its stake in Sempra by 5.5% during the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 3,083 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the period. Finally, Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton lifted its position in shares of Sempra by 4.2% during the third quarter. Rosenberg Matthew Hamilton now owns 4,031 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $337,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Stock Down 4.2 %

Sempra stock opened at $82.86 on Thursday. Sempra has a 1-year low of $66.40 and a 1-year high of $95.77. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $88.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $84.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.25, a PEG ratio of 2.16 and a beta of 0.78.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.16). Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.54 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.08 EPS. The business’s revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th were paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.99%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.63%.

About Sempra

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.