UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 6.0% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 4,601,372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 258,979 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC’s holdings in Sempra were worth $403,632,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Waverly Advisors LLC bought a new position in Sempra in the fourth quarter worth approximately $286,000. Woodline Partners LP bought a new position in Sempra in the fourth quarter worth approximately $3,337,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new position in Sempra in the fourth quarter worth approximately $9,878,000. Vident Advisory LLC raised its position in Sempra by 26.0% in the fourth quarter. Vident Advisory LLC now owns 15,938 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,398,000 after acquiring an additional 3,284 shares during the period. Finally, Vivaldi Capital Management LP bought a new position in Sempra in the fourth quarter worth approximately $283,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Stock Down 0.4%

SRE stock opened at $78.14 on Wednesday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $71.92 and its 200-day simple moving average is $80.15. The company has a market capitalization of $50.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.47. Sempra has a 12 month low of $61.90 and a 12 month high of $95.77.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.90 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.34 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 26th will be paid a $0.645 dividend. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 26th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.70%.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In other Sempra news, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total transaction of $595,193.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,260,117.94. This represents a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Cynthia J. Warner bought 700 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $70.65 per share, with a total value of $49,455.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,759 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $618,823.35. The trade was a 8.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 9,319 shares of company stock worth $651,676 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley set a $89.00 price target on shares of Sempra and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group downgraded shares of Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Mizuho decreased their price objective on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.77.

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.