Insider Selling: Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Insider Sells $595,193.90 in Stock

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total transaction of $595,193.90. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,969 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,260,117.94. The trade was a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link.

Sempra Stock Performance

SRE stock opened at $77.65 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $50.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.10, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.63. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $71.52 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $80.21. Sempra has a one year low of $61.90 and a one year high of $95.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.52.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.90 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.34 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.645 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 26th. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. UBS Group lowered shares of Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Sempra from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Sempra from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Sempra from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Mizuho decreased their target price on Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $80.77.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sempra

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its holdings in Sempra by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its holdings in Sempra by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 8,194 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $719,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Sempra by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,585 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $227,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. MJP Associates Inc. ADV grew its stake in shares of Sempra by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 6,195 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $543,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sempra by 5.0% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,639 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $232,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

About Sempra

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.