Spire (NYSE:SR) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.24 EPS

Spire (NYSE:SR) announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday. The utilities provider reported $1.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by $0.24, Briefing.com reports. Spire had a return on equity of 8.78% and a net margin of 10.96%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.34 EPS. Spire updated its FY 2027 guidance to 5.650-5.850 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance to 5.250-5.450 EPS.

Spire Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of SR stock opened at $85.21 on Tuesday. Spire has a 1-year low of $68.48 and a 1-year high of $91.11. The firm has a market cap of $5.04 billion, a PE ratio of 19.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a 50-day moving average of $83.66 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 0.32 and a quick ratio of 0.21.

Spire Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th will be given a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, March 11th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.9%. Spire’s dividend payout ratio is presently 75.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on SR. Bank of America upgraded Spire from an “underperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $76.00 to $89.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 29th. BTIG Research upgraded shares of Spire to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Spire from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Spire in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $93.00 price target on shares of Spire in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Spire currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.36.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Spire

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. increased its holdings in Spire by 158.1% in the 2nd quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,000,000 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $72,990,000 after purchasing an additional 612,500 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Spire by 44.4% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 846,263 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $68,987,000 after buying an additional 260,344 shares during the period. UBS Group AG boosted its position in shares of Spire by 53.0% during the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 497,657 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $40,569,000 after buying an additional 172,493 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Spire in the first quarter valued at $9,636,000. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Spire by 35.4% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 317,998 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $23,211,000 after buying an additional 83,067 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

About Spire

Spire Inc (NYSE: SR), formerly known as The Laclede Group, is a regulated natural gas distribution company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Through its three operating divisions—Spire Missouri, Spire Alabama and Spire Mississippi—the company delivers natural gas to more than 1.7 million residential, commercial and industrial customers. Spire’s service territory spans key markets in the central and southern United States, including metropolitan St. Louis, central Alabama and central Mississippi.

Founded in 1857 as the Laclede Gas Light Company, the business has grown through strategic acquisitions, notably Alabama Gas Corporation in 2013 and Mississippi Gas in 2016.