Reaves W H & Co. Inc. Sells 269,414 Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Reaves W H & Co. Inc. cut its position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 17.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,317,858 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 269,414 shares during the quarter. Sempra makes up approximately 3.1% of Reaves W H & Co. Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest holding. Reaves W H & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Sempra were worth $115,602,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Human Investing LLC acquired a new position in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Hollencrest Capital Management grew its stake in Sempra by 250.0% in the 3rd quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 378 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its stake in Sempra by 225.6% in the 4th quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 433 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LRI Investments LLC grew its stake in Sempra by 180.4% in the 3rd quarter. LRI Investments LLC now owns 443 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sempra Price Performance

Shares of SRE opened at $71.41 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.52 billion, a PE ratio of 15.73, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.78. The company’s 50-day moving average is $82.82 and its 200-day moving average is $84.73. Sempra has a fifty-two week low of $64.89 and a fifty-two week high of $95.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.47.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.03. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The company had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.13 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.61%. This is a positive change from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total transaction of $225,717.15. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,139,236.65. This trade represents a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total transaction of $4,125,186.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares in the company, valued at approximately $165.88. This represents a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on SRE. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Sempra from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim decreased their price target on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “hold” rating and issued a $77.00 price target (down from $96.00) on shares of Sempra in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Sempra from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price target on shares of Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $82.92.

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.