Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) have been given an average rating of “Hold” by the nine brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, six have given a hold recommendation and two have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $71.50.

Several analysts have recently commented on SR shares. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Spire from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded Spire from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $65.50 to $60.50 in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on shares of Spire in a research report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Spire from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Mizuho raised shares of Spire from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price target for the company from $65.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,150 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.47, for a total transaction of $77,590.50. Following the completion of the sale, the treasurer now owns 2,587 shares in the company, valued at $174,544.89. This trade represents a 30.77 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul D. Koonce purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were bought at an average price of $73.61 per share, with a total value of $73,610.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,425 shares in the company, valued at $178,504.25. The trade was a 70.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 2.33% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Spire

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wealthfront Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,561,000. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its stake in shares of Spire by 30.0% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 14,127 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $958,000 after purchasing an additional 3,260 shares during the last quarter. Inceptionr LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the 4th quarter worth approximately $504,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the 4th quarter worth approximately $3,198,000. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its stake in shares of Spire by 20.5% during the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 2,030 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $138,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of SR opened at $71.31 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.45 and a quick ratio of 0.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $68.93 and a 200-day moving average of $67.02. The company has a market cap of $4.12 billion, a PE ratio of 16.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.58. Spire has a one year low of $56.99 and a one year high of $73.64.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.42 by ($0.08). Spire had a net margin of 9.52% and a return on equity of 8.10%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Spire will post 4.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Spire Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.785 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $3.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.40%. Spire’s dividend payout ratio is currently 72.85%.

Spire Company Profile

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.