Jennison Associates LLC Lowers Stock Holdings in Sempra Energy $SRE

Jennison Associates LLC reduced its position in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 0.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,681,245 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 851 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $127,388,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Mendel Money Management boosted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 1.6% during the second quarter. Mendel Money Management now owns 8,476 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $642,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 2.2% in the second quarter. Tritonpoint Wealth LLC now owns 5,999 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $458,000 after acquiring an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 1.7% in the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 8,169 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $583,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 0.6% in the second quarter. Concurrent Investment Advisors LLC now owns 25,370 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,922,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pingora Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 48.3% in the first quarter. Pingora Partners LLC now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 0.6%

Sempra Energy stock opened at $92.65 on Wednesday. Sempra Energy has a 1-year low of $61.90 and a 1-year high of $95.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The stock has a market cap of $60.45 billion, a PE ratio of 22.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.66. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $86.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.15.

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

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 1st were given a dividend of $0.645 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Sempra Energy’s payout ratio is 62.32%.

Insider Transactions at Sempra Energy

In other news, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total transaction of $419,399.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,229,553.80. The trade was a 11.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Kevin C. Sagara sold 14,433 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total value of $1,291,753.50. Following the sale, the director owned 1,042 shares in the company, valued at $93,259. This trade represents a 93.27% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have sold 48,411 shares of company stock worth $4,141,790 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Mizuho increased their price objective on Sempra Energy from $86.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Evercore ISI set a $105.00 price objective on Sempra Energy and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $89.00 price objective on Sempra Energy and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sempra Energy presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.00.

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.