Bank of America Corp DE Reduces Holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Bank of America Corp DE lessened its holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 12.5% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 9,747,446 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,394,197 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE’s holdings in Sempra were worth $855,046,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its stake in Sempra by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $211,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 8,194 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $719,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Sempra by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,585 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. raised its stake in Sempra by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,639 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Avantax Planning Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in Sempra by 2.0% in the 4th quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 7,423 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $651,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Sempra

In related news, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 4,817 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total value of $343,114.91. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,408,786.94. This represents a 19.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $1,139,236.65. The trade was a 16.54 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have bought 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Stock Performance

NYSE:SRE opened at $75.41 on Tuesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $70.57 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Sempra has a twelve month low of $61.90 and a twelve month high of $95.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.61, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.65.

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

Sempra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a $0.645 dividend. This is an increase from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.42%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $99.00 to $76.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Citigroup cut their price target on Sempra from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley set a $89.00 price objective on Sempra and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group lowered Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their price target on Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.54.

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.