Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC decreased its position in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) by 30.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 195,999 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 84,904 shares during the period. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC owned about 0.34% of Spire worth $13,295,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Spire during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Spire by 87.2% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares during the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Spire during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Spire by 1,318.4% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 539 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Finally, R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in Spire during the fourth quarter worth about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of research analysts have weighed in on SR shares. Mizuho lifted their price target on shares of Spire from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Spire from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Bank of America started coverage on Spire in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 price target on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Spire to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of Spire from $67.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Tuesday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $75.64.
Get Our Latest Analysis on Spire
Spire Stock Performance
NYSE:SR traded up $0.80 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $79.63. 283,001 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 378,821. Spire Inc. has a 52 week low of $57.27 and a 52 week high of $79.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.73 and a 200-day simple moving average of $69.85.
Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.42 by ($0.08). Spire had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 9.70%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Spire Inc. will post 4.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Spire Cuts Dividend
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were given a dividend of $0.785 per share. This represents a $3.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.94%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. Spire's payout ratio is 76.03%.
Spire Profile
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Free Report)
Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.
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