Transcend Capital Advisors LLC Increases Stock Position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 2.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Sempra were worth $379,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $958,253,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Sempra by 12.1% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 27,123,899 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,026,969,000 after acquiring an additional 2,917,668 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in shares of Sempra by 5,279.4% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,583,816 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $113,591,000 after acquiring an additional 1,554,374 shares during the period. M&G Plc acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $64,994,000. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP lifted its position in shares of Sempra by 96.9% during the 1st quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 1,636,202 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $117,528,000 after acquiring an additional 805,084 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Trading Up 0.3 %

Shares of Sempra stock traded up $0.26 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $81.74. 2,695,386 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,744,951. Sempra has a 52-week low of $63.75 and a 52-week high of $83.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a fifty day moving average of $76.60 and a 200-day moving average of $73.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.35 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.58 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.95% and a net margin of 20.99%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 44.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.46 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 27th were given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.03%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 27th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on SRE shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reduced their price target on shares of Sempra from $81.50 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 29th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Sempra from $79.00 to $76.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Sempra from $79.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 8th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on Sempra from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Sempra from $86.00 to $84.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $82.10.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 6,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total value of $457,927.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 14,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,107,357.57. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 6,100 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total value of $457,927.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 14,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,107,357.57. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard J. Mark purchased 1,925 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 17th. The stock was bought at an average price of $77.97 per share, with a total value of $150,092.25. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 5,420 shares in the company, valued at approximately $422,597.40. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Sempra 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.