Hartree Partners LP Buys New Shares in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Hartree Partners LP purchased a new position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 5,450 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $478,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Sempra in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sempra by 265.2% during the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Human Investing LLC acquired a new position in Sempra in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its position in Sempra by 225.6% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 433 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE SRE opened at $69.65 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $77.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $83.13. Sempra has a 52-week low of $64.89 and a 52-week high of $95.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.37 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.34, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.13 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 3.70%. This is a boost from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Sempra from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Barclays downgraded Sempra from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $95.00 to $72.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th. Guggenheim lowered their price objective on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $77.00 price objective (down previously from $96.00) on shares of Sempra in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets lowered their price target on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.33.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Cynthia J. Warner purchased 700 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $70.65 per share, for a total transaction of $49,455.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 8,759 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $618,823.35. This trade represents a 8.69 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total value of $225,717.15. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,139,236.65. This represents a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have purchased 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.