Spire (NYSE:SR) Stock Rating Upgraded by LADENBURG THALM/SH SH

LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Spire (NYSE:SR) from a sell rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Wednesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have $83.00 price target on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other analysts also recently commented on the stock. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on shares of Spire in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $73.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Spire from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Spire from $70.00 to $69.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Friday, November 22nd. UBS Group upped their price objective on Spire from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Mizuho raised shares of Spire from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $65.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Spire presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $74.00.

Spire Trading Up 1.0 %

Spire stock opened at $76.43 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $69.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $67.76. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.51, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.50. Spire has a 52 week low of $57.27 and a 52 week high of $76.80.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.42 by ($0.08). Spire had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 9.70%. Analysts expect that Spire will post 4.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Spire Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors 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 4.11%. Spire’s dividend payout ratio is 76.03%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Spire

In related news, Director Paul D. Koonce purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were bought at an average cost of $73.61 per share, with a total value of $73,610.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 2,425 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $178,504.25. This trade represents a 70.18 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,150 shares of the 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 transaction, the treasurer now directly owns 2,587 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $174,544.89. The trade was a 30.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.33% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Spire

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Spire in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Spire during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in Spire by 87.2% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 204 shares during the period. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. bought a new position in shares of Spire during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Spire by 1,318.4% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 539 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

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.