Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI Increases Stock Position in Sempra Energy $SRE

Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI boosted its stake in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 8.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,862 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,586 shares during the quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $1,505,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Castellan Group raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 8.3% in the second quarter. Castellan Group now owns 40,348 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $3,057,000 after purchasing an additional 3,083 shares in the last quarter. Callan Family Office LLC raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 234.5% in the second quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 12,587 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $954,000 after purchasing an additional 8,824 shares in the last quarter. Blair William & Co. IL raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 5.8% in the second quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 36,853 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,792,000 after purchasing an additional 2,006 shares in the last quarter. Rice Partnership LLC purchased a new stake in Sempra Energy in the second quarter valued at approximately $428,000. Finally, Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its position in Sempra Energy by 9.3% during the second quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System now owns 619,453 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $46,936,000 after acquiring an additional 52,668 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of Sempra Energy stock opened at $90.15 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.66. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $84.32 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.03. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $61.90 and a 52-week high of $95.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.48.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.35 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.89 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be issued a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Sempra Energy’s payout ratio is 62.32%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on SRE. Evercore ISI set a $105.00 price target on shares of Sempra Energy and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $86.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 price target (up from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $71.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $86.09.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $126,080.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 15,600 shares in the company, valued at $1,248,000. The trade was a 9.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Kevin C. Sagara sold 14,433 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction on Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total transaction of $1,291,753.50. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 1,042 shares in the company, valued at approximately $93,259. This trade represents a 93.27% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 49,987 shares of company stock worth $4,267,870 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Energy 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.