4,860 Shares in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Bought by Fox Run Management L.L.C.

Fox Run Management L.L.C. bought a new position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 4,860 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $426,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in Sempra by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 34,324,893 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,870,591,000 after purchasing an additional 128,847 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Sempra by 4.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 32,940,620 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,774,974,000 after acquiring an additional 1,539,026 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Sempra by 9.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,978,605 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,587,181,000 after acquiring an additional 1,582,653 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Sempra by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 12,761,872 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,063,007,000 after purchasing an additional 145,873 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,695,988 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $639,921,000 after purchasing an additional 129,891 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SRE has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Sempra from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Argus downgraded Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Mizuho reduced their price target on Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $77.00 price objective (down previously from $96.00) on shares of Sempra in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their target price on Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $81.33.

Insider Transactions at Sempra

In related news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were 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 owns 2 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $165.88. This trade represents a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Cynthia J. Warner purchased 700 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $70.65 per share, for a total transaction of $49,455.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 8,759 shares in the company, valued at approximately $618,823.35. The trade was a 8.69 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders acquired 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676 in the last ninety days. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Sempra Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE SRE traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $70.12. 1,067,482 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,479,362. 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 has a one year low of $64.89 and a one year high of $95.77. The company's 50-day moving average is $77.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $83.22. The company has a market capitalization of $45.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.13 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a dividend of $0.645 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.68%. This is an increase from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Sempra's dividend payout ratio is 58.37%.

Sempra 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.