Brokerages Set Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Target Price at $81.50

Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) have received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $81.58.

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SRE. Guggenheim cut their price target on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Sempra from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday. Mizuho cut their price objective on Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays cut Sempra from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total transaction of $225,717.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,139,236.65. This trade represents a 16.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Pablo Ferrero bought 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $70.96 per share, for a total transaction of $184,496.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 15,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,110,453.04. This trade represents a 19.92 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have bought a total of 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676 over the last three months. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sempra

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sempra by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC grew its position in Sempra by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 8,194 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $719,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in Sempra by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,585 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 6,195 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $543,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,639 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sempra Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SRE opened at $70.10 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.47. Sempra has a one year low of $64.89 and a one year high of $95.77. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $78.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $83.66. The company has a market capitalization of $45.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.73 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $0.645 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. This is a positive change from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.37%.

Sempra Company Profile

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.