Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) SVP Sells $400,001.10 in Stock

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 4,322 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.55, for a total transaction of $400,001.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,325 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,048,128.75. The trade was a 27.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink.

Sempra Energy Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of Sempra Energy stock opened at $93.63 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.11 billion, a PE ratio of 22.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.68. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $61.90 and a 52-week high of $95.77. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $88.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $81.44.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.89 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 11th. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SRE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, October 27th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $115.00 price target for the company. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Monday, August 4th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $89.00 price objective on shares of Sempra Energy and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Two investment 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.42.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in SRE. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Sempra Energy by 51.2% during 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 boosted its position 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 worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. NewSquare Capital LLC increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 245.1% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 230.8% during the 2nd quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

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.