Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Position Cut by Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC

Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 7.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 320,736 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 24,650 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned about 0.05% of Sempra worth $28,135,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in shares of Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. TCTC Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sempra by 265.2% in 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. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra in the fourth quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 225.6% during the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 433 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total transaction of $4,125,186.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 4,817 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total transaction of $343,114.91. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,408,786.94. This trade represents a 19.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders acquired 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676 and sold 57,309 shares valued at $4,694,019. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

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Sempra Stock Down 6.8 %

Sempra stock traded down $4.84 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $65.89. The stock had a trading volume of 6,643,959 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,619,447. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $75.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $82.71. Sempra has a 12 month low of $64.89 and a 12 month high of $95.77. The stock has a market cap of $42.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.51, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last issued 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 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 business earned $1.13 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be given a $0.645 dividend. This is an increase from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. Sempra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Sempra from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and set a $77.00 price objective (down previously from $96.00) on shares of Sempra in a research note on Monday, March 3rd. Guggenheim reduced their price target on Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Barclays downgraded shares of Sempra from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $81.33.

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.