Cetera Investment Advisers Buys 19,744 Shares of Sempra Energy $SRE

Cetera Investment Advisers lifted its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 11.2% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 195,253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,744 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $14,794,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in Sempra Energy by 51.2% in the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 375 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Pingora Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 48.3% in the 1st quarter. Pingora Partners LLC now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the period. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 245.1% in the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 230.8% in the 2nd quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 74.1% during the 2nd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CAO Dyan Z. Wold sold 1,510 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.38, for a total transaction of $137,983.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer directly owned 3,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $318,093.78. This represents a 30.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kevin C. Sagara sold 14,433 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total value of $1,291,753.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 1,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $93,259. This represents a 93.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 55,129 shares of company stock worth $4,809,916. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

NYSE SRE opened at $91.14 on Thursday. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $90.14 and its 200-day moving average is $82.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The company has a market capitalization of $59.49 billion, a PE ratio of 22.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.68. Sempra Energy has a 12-month low of $61.90 and a 12-month high of $95.77.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.27. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The business had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 11th will be given a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 11th. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Sempra Energy’s payout ratio is currently 79.14%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on SRE. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $99.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Evercore ISI set a $105.00 price objective on Sempra Energy and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. UBS Group increased their target price on Sempra Energy from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, October 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.42.

Sempra Energy 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.