Quest Partners LLC Purchases Shares of 9,692 Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Quest Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 9,692 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $724,000.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Sempra in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC grew its position in Sempra by 100.0% in the third quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 390 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. increased its stake in Sempra by 100.0% in the third quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC raised its position in Sempra by 100.0% during the third quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Spire Wealth Management lifted its stake in Sempra by 85.6% during the third quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 412 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:SRE traded down $0.47 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $77.93. 367,999 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,007,642. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The business’s 50 day moving average is $72.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $72.35. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.32 billion, a PE ratio of 17.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.70. Sempra has a one year low of $63.75 and a one year high of $78.83.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.01). Sempra had a net margin of 20.99% and a return on equity of 8.95%. The business had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.46 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 44.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 27th will be paid a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 27th. Sempra’s payout ratio is 54.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Barclays increased their price objective on Sempra from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Sempra from $79.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Sempra from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of Sempra in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Sempra from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.86.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In other Sempra news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 57,571 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.59, for a total value of $4,063,936.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 10,922 shares in the company, valued at approximately $770,983.98. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 50,703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.92, for a total value of $3,595,856.76. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $141.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 57,571 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.59, for a total value of $4,063,936.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $770,983.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 122,432 shares of company stock worth $8,668,035 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

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.