Quest Partners LLC Decreases Stock Position in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Quest Partners LLC decreased its stake in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) by 19.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 28,123 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 6,725 shares during the quarter. Quest Partners LLC’s holdings in Spire were worth $1,892,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of SR. Swiss National Bank increased its stake in shares of Spire by 4.3% during the third quarter. Swiss National Bank now owns 112,750 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $7,587,000 after buying an additional 4,600 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its holdings in shares of Spire by 0.3% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 646,206 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $43,483,000 after purchasing an additional 1,681 shares in the last quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Spire in the 3rd quarter valued at $506,000. KBC Group NV grew its stake in shares of Spire by 33.1% during the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,557 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $105,000 after purchasing an additional 387 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MQS Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Spire by 7.0% during the third quarter. MQS Management LLC now owns 5,261 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $354,000 after purchasing an additional 346 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of SR opened at $68.19 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $65.49 and its 200-day simple moving average is $63.59. Spire Inc. has a 12-month low of $56.36 and a 12-month high of $68.35. The firm has a market cap of $3.94 billion, a PE ratio of 16.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.11.

Spire Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be issued a $3.14 dividend. This represents a $12.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 18.42%. This is a boost from Spire’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, December 11th. Spire’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.60%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on SR shares. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH downgraded Spire from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $65.50 to $60.50 in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on Spire from $64.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Spire from $72.00 to $73.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Spire from $70.00 to $76.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $66.19.

Insider Transactions at Spire

In other news, VP Gerard J. Gorla sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.82, for a total value of $32,410.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,311 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $473,899.02. The trade was a 6.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.86% of the company’s stock.

Spire Profile

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.