IFM Investors Pty Ltd Reduces Position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

IFM Investors Pty Ltd trimmed its stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 212,012 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,393 shares during the period. IFM Investors Pty Ltd’s holdings in Sempra were worth $17,731,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Sempra by 55.1% during the 1st quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 6,676 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $480,000 after buying an additional 2,372 shares in the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management boosted its position in shares of Sempra by 7.8% in the first quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 3,038 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $218,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Sempra by 12.8% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 123,275 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,855,000 after purchasing an additional 13,986 shares in the last quarter. Congress Park Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 1st quarter valued at $212,000. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sempra during the 1st quarter valued at $264,000. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE SRE traded down $0.16 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $85.80. 654,172 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,856,736. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $82.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $77.97. Sempra has a 12 month low of $66.40 and a 12 month high of $86.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.03). Sempra had a return on equity of 8.58% and a net margin of 22.31%. The firm had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.94 EPS. Sempra’s revenue was down 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th were issued a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 26th. Sempra’s payout ratio is currently 54.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have issued reports on SRE. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Sempra in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $98.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Sempra from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Barclays boosted their price target on Sempra from $87.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Sempra from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Sempra presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $87.55.

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.