Intech Investment Management LLC Invests $790,000 in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 11,745 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $790,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its position in Spire by 197.4% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 162,195 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $9,850,000 after buying an additional 107,662 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Spire by 290.9% in the second quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 130,827 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $7,877,000 after buying an additional 97,358 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its position in Spire by 8.3% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 944,387 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $57,351,000 after buying an additional 72,119 shares during the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Spire by 11.0% in the second quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 698,819 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,439,000 after buying an additional 69,020 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meritage Portfolio Management purchased a new stake in Spire in the third quarter valued at approximately $3,086,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company's stock.

Spire Stock Performance

Spire stock traded up $0.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $73.19. The company had a trading volume of 140,414 shares, compared to its average volume of 413,906. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. Spire Inc. has a 12-month low of $56.36 and a 12-month high of $73.64. The company's fifty day moving average is $66.49 and its 200-day moving average is $64.25. The company has a market capitalization of $4.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.52.

Spire Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $3.14 per share. This represents a $12.56 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 17.16%. This is an increase from Spire's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. Spire's dividend payout ratio is presently 72.85%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Mizuho upped their target price on Spire from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com lowered Spire from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lowered Spire from a "neutral" rating to a "sell" rating and dropped their target price for the company from $65.50 to $60.50 in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Spire from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Spire from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 22nd. Two equities research 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 data from MarketBeat, Spire has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $69.93.

Spire Company 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.