Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Stock Holdings Lifted by CIBC Asset Management Inc

CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 7.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 107,800 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 7,198 shares during the period. CIBC Asset Management Inc's holdings in Sempra were worth $9,015,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on SRE shares. Bank of America assumed coverage on shares of Sempra in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $94.00 target price for the company. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Sempra in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $98.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their target price on Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted 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. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $89.00.

Sempra Trading Up 1.9 %

Shares of SRE stock traded up $1.75 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $92.19. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,050,146 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,316,892. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.39 billion, a PE ratio of 20.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.75. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $84.52 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.96. Sempra has a 12-month low of $66.40 and a 12-month high of $93.12.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.16). Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The company had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.54 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 5th. Sempra's payout ratio is 54.63%.

About Sempra

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.