Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Downgraded by Barclays to Equal Weight

Barclays lowered shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) from an overweight rating to an equal weight rating in a report published on Thursday morning, MarketBeat Ratings reports. They currently have $72.00 target price on the utilities provider’s stock, down from their prior target price of $95.00.

A number of other research firms also recently commented on SRE. UBS Group downgraded Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Sempra from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Guggenheim decreased their target price on Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Sempra from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.54.

Sempra Stock Down 0.6 %

Sempra stock opened at $71.50 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.47. Sempra has a 1-year low of $64.89 and a 1-year high of $95.77. The company has a market cap of $45.29 billion, a PE ratio of 15.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.78. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $83.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $84.75.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.03. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.13 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a $0.645 dividend. This is a positive change from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.61%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.11%.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In related news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total value of $4,125,186.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares in the company, valued at approximately $165.88. This represents a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total value of $225,717.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,139,236.65. The trade was a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sempra

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Sempra during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Sempra during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Sempra during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Sempra during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC increased its stake in Sempra by 265.2% during the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sempra 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.