Zacks Research Issues Optimistic Estimate for Spire Earnings

Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) – Research analysts at Zacks Research increased their Q1 2028 earnings estimates for shares of Spire in a report released on Tuesday, July 14th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the utilities provider will post earnings per share of $2.15 for the quarter, up from their prior estimate of $2.14. The consensus estimate for Spire’s current full-year earnings is $4.02 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Spire’s FY2028 earnings at $6.05 EPS.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Mizuho started coverage on Spire in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $88.00 target price for the company. UBS Group cut their target price on Spire from $106.00 to $103.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 8th. TD Cowen began coverage on Spire in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They set a “hold” rating and a $101.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Spire from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $96.00 price target on shares of Spire in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.30.

Spire Trading Down 1.4%

NYSE:SR opened at $81.30 on Wednesday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $81.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $86.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.48. Spire has a 12 month low of $71.24 and a 12 month high of $95.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.81 billion, a PE ratio of 14.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.52.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $3.76 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.72 by $0.04. Spire had a net margin of 13.97% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The firm had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.07 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $3.60 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis.

Institutional Trading of Spire

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Spire by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 40,489 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,348,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the period. Detalus Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Spire by 2.3% during the first quarter. Detalus Advisors LLC now owns 6,200 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $561,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Spire by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 5,734 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $474,000 after purchasing an additional 144 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Spire by 40.3% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 519 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Spire by 16.5% in the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,136 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $94,000 after purchasing an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Spire news, SVP Ryan L. Hyman sold 3,822 shares of Spire stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.51, for a total value of $307,709.22. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 14,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,150,890.45. The trade was a 21.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Paul D. Koonce bought 500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $78.46 per share, with a total value of $39,230.00. Following the purchase, the director owned 8,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $627,680. The trade was a 6.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders bought a total of 3,000 shares of company stock valued at $251,100 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 2.26% of the company’s stock.

Spire Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 11th were issued a $0.825 dividend. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 11th. Spire’s payout ratio is currently 58.00%.

About Spire

Spire Inc (NYSE: SR), formerly known as The Laclede Group, is a regulated natural gas distribution company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Through its three operating divisions—Spire Missouri, Spire Alabama and Spire Mississippi—the company delivers natural gas to more than 1.7 million residential, commercial and industrial customers. Spire’s service territory spans key markets in the central and southern United States, including metropolitan St. Louis, central Alabama and central Mississippi.

Founded in 1857 as the Laclede Gas Light Company, the business has grown through strategic acquisitions, notably Alabama Gas Corporation in 2013 and Mississippi Gas in 2016.