Holocene Advisors LP Sells 7,431 Shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Holocene Advisors LP lessened its stake in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) by 40.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 10,965 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 7,431 shares during the quarter. Holocene Advisors LP's holdings in Spire were worth $738,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SR. ClearAlpha Technologies LP purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the 3rd quarter worth $277,000. Verition Fund Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Spire by 46.9% in the 3rd quarter. Verition Fund Management LLC now owns 9,806 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $660,000 after acquiring an additional 3,130 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors purchased a new position in Spire in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $39,228,000. Martingale Asset Management L P boosted its position in Spire by 51.3% during the third quarter. Martingale Asset Management L P now owns 38,356 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,581,000 after purchasing an additional 13,004 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Spire by 3.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 187,611 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $12,624,000 after purchasing an additional 5,899 shares during the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Paul D. Koonce acquired 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $73.61 per share, for a total transaction of $73,610.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,425 shares in the company, valued at $178,504.25. This represents a 70.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 2.86% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Spire Stock Down 0.5 %

SR stock traded down $0.34 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $70.42. The company had a trading volume of 171,153 shares, compared to its average volume of 339,962. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The company has a market capitalization of $4.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.34, a PEG ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a 50 day moving average of $66.95 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.57. Spire Inc. has a 1 year low of $56.36 and a 1 year high of $73.64.

Spire Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a $3.14 dividend. This represents a $12.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 17.84%. This is a boost from Spire's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. Spire's payout ratio is presently 70.07%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SR has been the topic of several recent research reports. StockNews.com downgraded Spire from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday, November 29th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lowered Spire from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $65.50 to $60.50 in a research note on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Spire from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on shares of Spire from $70.00 to $69.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Spire from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Spire has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $69.93.

About Spire

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.