Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Stake Reduced by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 2.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,603,786 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 33,449 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.25% of Sempra worth $140,684,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sempra during the fourth quarter worth about $255,000. James Investment Research Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Sempra by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. James Investment Research Inc. now owns 27,133 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,380,000 after buying an additional 222 shares during the period. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,300,000. Allworth Financial LP lifted its position in Sempra by 41.2% during the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 11,484 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $951,000 after acquiring an additional 3,349 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in Sempra by 11.7% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 9,479 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $831,000 after acquiring an additional 990 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Sempra from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $85.00 to $98.00 in a research note on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on shares of Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Sempra in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $98.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on Sempra from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to MarketBeat.com, Sempra has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $91.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sempra news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total transaction of $225,717.15. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,905 shares in the company, valued at $1,139,236.65. The trade was a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total transaction of $4,125,186.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares in the company, valued at $165.88. This trade represents a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sempra Stock Up 1.3 %

Shares of SRE stock traded up $1.10 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $87.11. 4,643,959 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,261,902. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.52. The stock has a market capitalization of $55.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.78. Sempra has a one year low of $66.40 and a one year high of $95.77. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $84.36 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $84.75.

Sempra Company Profile

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.