Assetmark Inc. Boosts Position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Assetmark Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 3.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 423,940 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 12,966 shares during the quarter. Assetmark Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Sempra worth $35,454,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 6.9% in the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 13,452,912 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,023,228,000 after buying an additional 874,133 shares in the last quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its stake in Sempra by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 2,404,573 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $182,158,000 after purchasing an additional 48,592 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 19.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,757,553 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $133,679,000 after purchasing an additional 289,731 shares during the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its position in shares of Sempra by 1.6% during the second quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,659,618 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $126,246,000 after purchasing an additional 26,862 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP increased its holdings in shares of Sempra by 96.9% in the first quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 1,636,202 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $117,528,000 after purchasing an additional 805,084 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Sempra Trading Up 1.7 %

Shares of SRE stock traded up $1.49 on Friday, reaching $91.25. 3,733,561 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,307,586. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $83.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.26. Sempra has a 52 week low of $66.40 and a 52 week high of $91.88. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.80 billion, a PE ratio of 20.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.75.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.16). The business had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.54 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.08 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.77 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.72%. Sempra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on SRE shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Sempra from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Sempra in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $98.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $89.00.

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.