Mizuho Securities USA LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 46.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 60,032 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 18,976 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Sempra were worth $5,266,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sempra by 633.4% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 29,917 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,624,000 after purchasing an additional 25,838 shares during the period. Unigestion Holding SA bought a new stake in Sempra in the third quarter worth about $33,023,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Sempra by 8.8% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,428,132 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $286,695,000 after acquiring an additional 278,183 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Sempra during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $675,000. Finally, Empower Advisory Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Sempra by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Empower Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,071,091 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $93,956,000 after purchasing an additional 26,821 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In other Sempra news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total transaction of $4,125,186.78. Following the transaction, 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director James C. Yardley acquired 5,019 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $69.74 per share, with a total value of $350,025.06. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at approximately $350,025.06. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have bought 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676. Corporate insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on SRE shares. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Sempra from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their target price on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. UBS Group cut shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their price objective on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $81.33.

Sempra Price Performance

NYSE SRE traded down $0.62 during trading on Thursday, reaching $70.15. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,412,651 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,372,041. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.70 billion, a PE ratio of 15.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.47. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $77.82 and a 200 day moving average of $83.31. Sempra has a one year low of $64.89 and a one year high of $95.77.

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

Sempra Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be issued a $0.645 dividend. This is a boost from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.68%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 20th. Sempra's dividend payout ratio is presently 58.37%.

Sempra 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.