Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Stock Position Raised by Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management increased its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 206.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,655 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,153 shares during the period. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $546,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 26.0% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 6,955 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $576,000 after buying an additional 1,435 shares in the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new stake in Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $16,674,000. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Sempra Energy by 3.6% during the 4th quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,068 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $444,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 14.4% in the fourth quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 526,770 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $46,197,000 after purchasing an additional 66,468 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co lifted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 133.6% in the fourth quarter. Ilmarinen Mutual Pension Insurance Co now owns 149,500 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $13,114,000 after purchasing an additional 85,500 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Sempra Energy

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $126,080.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 15,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,248,000. The trade was a 9.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total value of $595,193.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 16,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,260,117.94. This represents a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 0.9%

Shares of Sempra Energy stock opened at $80.97 on Friday. Sempra Energy has a 12-month low of $61.90 and a 12-month high of $95.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $76.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $75.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.80, a PEG ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 0.62.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.12. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 22.15% and a return on equity of 8.55%. The business had revenue of $3.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.34 earnings per share. Sempra Energy’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 26th were paid a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 26th. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Sempra Energy’s payout ratio is presently 56.70%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SRE has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $88.00 price target (up from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Citigroup cut their price objective on Sempra Energy from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Sempra Energy from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Sempra Energy from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.75.

About Sempra Energy

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.