Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Boosts Stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 71,656 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Sempra were worth $5,355,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SRE. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Sempra in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. PrairieView Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Sempra by 100.0% in the third quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC now owns 376 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 188 shares during the last quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its stake in Sempra by 100.0% in the third quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 390 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 195 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in Sempra by 119.9% in the third quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 398 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the period. Finally, Monetary Management Group Inc. grew its holdings 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 last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $71.13 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $44.96 billion, a PE ratio of 14.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 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 stock has a fifty day moving average of $70.40 and a 200-day moving average of $71.63. Sempra has a one year low of $63.75 and a one year high of $79.38.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 18.26%. Sempra’s revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.17 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate 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. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were given a $0.62 dividend. This is an increase from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 20th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.77%.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In other Sempra news, insider Diana L. Day sold 3,937 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.21, for a total transaction of $280,353.77. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,145 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,292,105.45. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Diana L. Day sold 3,937 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.21, for a total value of $280,353.77. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 18,145 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,292,105.45. 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 34,190 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.83, for a total transaction of $2,421,677.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2 shares in the company, valued at approximately $141.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 156,622 shares of company stock worth $11,089,713. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on SRE shares. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Sempra from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their target price for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Sempra from $83.00 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on Sempra in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $81.50 price target on the stock. StockNews.com lowered Sempra from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Sempra from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sempra currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.14.

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.