Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Cuts Stock Position in Sempra Energy $SRE

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH trimmed its holdings in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 0.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 312,420 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,086 shares during the period. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $23,672,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 4.7% during the 2nd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 329,865 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $25,080,000 after purchasing an additional 14,932 shares during the period. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI grew its holdings in Sempra Energy by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 31,336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,374,000 after buying an additional 807 shares in the last quarter. Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 3.1% during the second quarter. Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. now owns 407,311 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,123,000 after buying an additional 12,362 shares during the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 3.8% in the second quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 5,682 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $431,000 after buying an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 11.2% during the second quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 195,253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $14,794,000 after acquiring an additional 19,744 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 target price (up from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Barclays cut their price objective on Sempra Energy from $101.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Morgan Stanley reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $99.00 price target on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Wall Street Zen raised Sempra Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.42.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sempra Energy

In other news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 4,322 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.55, for a total value of $400,001.10. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,325 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,048,128.75. This trade represents a 27.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 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 transaction of $1,291,753.50. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 1,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $93,259. This represents a 93.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last three months, insiders sold 47,619 shares of company stock worth $4,122,392. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of NYSE SRE opened at $91.59 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 business’s 50 day moving average is $89.96 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.12, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.68.

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

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

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

Sempra Energy 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.