Enhancing Capital LLC Acquires Shares of 18,600 Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Enhancing Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 18,600 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,632,000. Sempra accounts for approximately 1.3% of Enhancing Capital LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 25th biggest holding.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SRE. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 633.4% during the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 29,917 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,624,000 after purchasing an additional 25,838 shares in the last quarter. Unigestion Holding SA bought a new position in shares of Sempra during the third quarter valued at approximately $33,023,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 8.8% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,428,132 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $286,695,000 after purchasing an additional 278,183 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 1.9% during the third quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 357,107 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,865,000 after purchasing an additional 6,709 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Sempra during the third quarter valued at approximately $675,000. 89.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SRE traded down $0.44 on Friday, hitting $69.56. 7,235,223 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,350,219. Sempra has a 1-year low of $64.89 and a 1-year high of $95.77. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $78.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $83.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76.

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Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.03. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The business had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.13 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current 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 issued a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. This is a boost from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Sempra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.37%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total transaction 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. This trade represents a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Michael N. Mears bought 1,000 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $67.70 per share, with a total value of $67,700.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 5,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $338,500. The trade was a 25.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on SRE. UBS Group downgraded shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and set a $77.00 price objective (down from $96.00) on shares of Sempra in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Sempra currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $81.58.

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.