Prudential Financial Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) by 70.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,940 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 16,525 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc.'s holdings in Spire were worth $471,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.
A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Spire by 87.2% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust grew its position in Spire by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Parkside Financial Bank & Trust now owns 2,308 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $157,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC increased its stake in Spire by 8.6% in the 4th quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 3,406 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $230,000 after buying an additional 271 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in Spire by 26.5% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,337 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $90,000 after buying an additional 280 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MBM Wealth Consultants LLC boosted its stake in shares of Spire by 7.1% during the 4th quarter. MBM Wealth Consultants LLC now owns 4,444 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $304,000 after buying an additional 295 shares during the period. 87.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Spire Price Performance
NYSE SR traded up $0.32 during trading on Friday, reaching $74.97. 370,978 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 388,402. Spire Inc. has a 1-year low of $57.27 and a 1-year high of $79.81. The company has a market cap of $4.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.15, a P/E/G ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.56. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $75.51 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a current ratio of 0.50.
Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.42 by ($0.08). Spire had a net margin of 9.70% and a return on equity of 7.88%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Spire Inc. will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.
Spire Cuts Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 11th were paid a $0.785 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, March 11th. This represents a $3.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.19%. Spire's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 76.03%.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
SR has been the subject of a number of research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Spire from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $72.00 to $85.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Spire from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. StockNews.com raised shares of Spire from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Spire in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 target price for the company. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Spire from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Spire has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $75.64.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Spire
Spire Profile
(
Free Report)
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.
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