Ieq Capital LLC Acquires Shares of 5,799 Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,799 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $393,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SR. Creative Planning increased its position in Spire by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,126 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $480,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Spire by 38.9% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,057 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $71,000 after buying an additional 296 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its stake in Spire by 116.2% during the third quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 28,025 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,886,000 after buying an additional 15,060 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in Spire by 17.4% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,174 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $281,000 after buying an additional 619 shares during the period. Finally, State of Alaska Department of Revenue boosted its position in Spire by 7.2% during the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 6,733 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $453,000 after acquiring an additional 455 shares during the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,150 shares of Spire stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.47, for a total transaction of $77,590.50. Following the sale, the treasurer now directly owns 2,587 shares in the company, valued at $174,544.89. The trade was a 30.77 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 2.33% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on SR shares. Bank of America assumed coverage on Spire in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 price objective for the company. Janney Montgomery Scott initiated coverage on shares of Spire in a report on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Spire from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, November 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their target price on Spire from $70.00 to $69.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Spire from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $83.00 target price for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $74.00.

Spire Stock Up 1.5 %

Spire stock traded up $1.12 during trading on Monday, hitting $77.98. 247,070 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 381,141. The company has a market capitalization of $4.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.88, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.58. The business's 50 day moving average is $70.57 and its 200 day moving average is $68.03. Spire Inc. has a 52 week low of $57.27 and a 52 week high of $78.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.42 by ($0.08). Spire had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 9.70%. Analysts predict that Spire Inc. will post 4.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Spire Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a $0.785 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $3.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.03%. Spire's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 76.03%.

Spire Profile

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.