Dyan Wold Sells 1,539 Shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Stock

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) CAO Dyan Wold sold 1,539 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.38, for a total transaction of $146,789.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,633 shares in the company, valued at $441,895.54. This trade represents a 24.94% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 0.0%

SRE opened at $95.92 on Wednesday. Sempra Energy has a twelve month low of $61.90 and a twelve month high of $97.44. The company has a fifty day moving average of $91.07 and a 200-day moving average of $89.87. The stock has a market cap of $62.66 billion, a PE ratio of 34.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.59 and a beta of 0.73. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.82 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 13.27% and a return on equity of 8.22%. Sempra Energy’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.50 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 19th will be paid a $0.6575 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 19th. This represents a $2.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is a positive change from Sempra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 93.48%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sempra Energy

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Sempra Energy in the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new stake in Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd increased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 57.7% during the 4th quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 347 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 83.0% in the fourth quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 355 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Key Financial Inc raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 73.6% in the fourth quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 361 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SRE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $99.00 price target (up from $80.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $101.00 price objective on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 target price (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Friday, March 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $100.00.

About Sempra Energy

Sempra Energy is a San Diego–based energy infrastructure company that develops, owns and operates businesses delivering electricity and natural gas. Its operations include regulated utility services that provide electric and gas distribution to residential, commercial and industrial customers, as well as non‑regulated infrastructure businesses that develop and manage large-scale energy assets.

The company’s product and service portfolio spans electricity and natural gas delivery, transmission and storage, liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, power generation and electric transmission projects.