Savvy Advisors Inc. Makes New Investment in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Savvy Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm bought 4,529 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $397,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new stake in Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Sempra during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Sempra in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its position in Sempra by 265.2% during the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In other Sempra news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total value of $225,717.15. Following the sale, the senior vice president now owns 13,905 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,139,236.65. The trade was a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 4,817 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total transaction of $343,114.91. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,408,786.94. This represents a 19.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders acquired 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676 and sold 57,309 shares valued at $4,694,019. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sempra Stock Up 1.1 %

SRE stock traded up $0.75 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $71.14. 3,595,052 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,686,324. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $72.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $81.54. The stock has a market cap of $46.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.67, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.65. Sempra has a fifty-two week low of $61.90 and a fifty-two week high of $95.77.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.03. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The business had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. Sempra's revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were issued a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. This is a positive change from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. Sempra's dividend payout ratio is currently 58.37%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on SRE shares. BMO Capital Markets lowered their price objective on Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Argus lowered Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Sempra from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Sempra from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Sempra from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sempra presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.31.

About Sempra

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.