Mackenzie Financial Corp Boosts Stock Position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 26.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 404,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 84,133 shares during the quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp’s holdings in Sempra were worth $30,194,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. PrairieView Partners LLC boosted its stake in Sempra by 100.0% during the third quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC now owns 376 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 188 shares during the period. Optimum Investment Advisors boosted its stake in Sempra by 100.0% during the third quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 380 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 190 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Sempra by 119.9% during the third quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 398 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 217 shares during the period. Monetary Management Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 100.0% during the third quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Essex Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 100.0% during the third quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 390 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Stock Performance

Shares of Sempra stock opened at $67.94 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $42.95 billion, a PE ratio of 14.18, a P/E/G ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.71. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a current ratio of 0.54. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $70.41 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $71.51. Sempra has a one year low of $63.75 and a one year high of $79.51.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.02. Sempra had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 18.26%. The business had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.17 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Sempra will post 4.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 21st were given a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.65%. This is a positive change from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 51.77%.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In related news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 34,190 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.83, for a total value of $2,421,677.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2 shares in the company, valued at $141.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Sempra news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 34,190 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.83, for a total value of $2,421,677.70. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2 shares in the company, valued at approximately $141.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 5,063 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.22, for a total value of $360,586.86. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,403,888.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 156,622 shares of company stock worth $11,089,713 over the last quarter. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on SRE shares. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Sempra from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Sempra from $83.00 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised shares of Sempra from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Sempra from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on shares of Sempra in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $81.50 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.14.

Sempra Company 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.