Deutsche Bank AG Invests $25.05 Million in Spire Inc. $SR

Deutsche Bank AG acquired a new position in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 320,765 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $25,049,000. Deutsche Bank AG owned 0.54% of Spire as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its stake in Spire by 10.0% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 212,438 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $16,623,000 after buying an additional 19,373 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the first quarter worth $9,636,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in shares of Spire by 1,031.5% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 557 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp boosted its position in Spire by 75.8% during the second quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 4,658 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $340,000 after acquiring an additional 2,009 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its stake in Spire by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 585,919 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,766,000 after purchasing an additional 8,726 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of SR stock opened at $80.97 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $80.59 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.79 billion, a PE ratio of 9.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. Spire Inc. has a 52 week low of $73.91 and a 52 week high of $95.31.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.32) by $0.06. Spire had a return on equity of 8.65% and a net margin of 21.48%.The firm had revenue of $420.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $394.62 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.01 earnings per share. Spire’s revenue was up 19.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Spire has set its FY 2026 guidance at 3.900-4.100 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Spire Inc. will post 4.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Spire Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 11th will be paid a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 11th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. Spire’s payout ratio is currently 36.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on SR. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Spire from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. BTIG Research set a $101.00 price target on shares of Spire in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Spire from $96.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Spire in a research report on Monday, May 11th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $96.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and set a $85.00 price objective (up from $84.00) on shares of Spire in a research report on Friday, June 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Spire has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.00.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Spire news, SVP Ryan L. Hyman sold 3,822 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.51, for a total value of $307,709.22. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 14,295 shares in the company, valued at $1,150,890.45. This trade represents a 21.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul D. Koonce purchased 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $78.46 per share, with a total value of $39,230.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director directly owned 8,000 shares in the company, valued at $627,680. The trade was a 6.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 2.26% of the company’s stock.

Spire Company Profile

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.