Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 47,154 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,198,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.08% of Spire as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Spire in the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Spire by 87.2% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 438 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 204 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Spire by 1,318.4% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 539 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $36,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in Spire during the 4th quarter worth approximately $37,000. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC raised its stake in shares of Spire by 431.4% during the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 627 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 509 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company's stock.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
A number of research firms recently weighed in on SR. Morgan Stanley lifted 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 lowered shares of Spire from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Mizuho increased their price target on shares of Spire from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Janney Montgomery Scott started coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $73.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Spire in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They set a "neutral" rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $76.00.
Read Our Latest Report on SR
Spire Price Performance
Shares of NYSE SR traded up $0.12 on Monday, hitting $78.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 412,190 shares, compared to its average volume of 378,693. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $74.41 and a 200-day moving average of $69.70. The company has a market capitalization of $4.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.53. Spire Inc. has a 12-month low of $57.27 and a 12-month high of $79.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21, a current ratio of 0.50 and a quick ratio of 0.37.
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 analysts' consensus estimates 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, research analysts predict that Spire Inc. will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.
Spire Cuts Dividend
The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.785 per share. This represents a $3.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. Spire's payout ratio is currently 76.03%.
Spire Company Profile
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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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