Barclays PLC Sells 1,226,024 Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Barclays PLC lessened its stake in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 50.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,181,642 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 1,226,024 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.19% of Sempra worth $103,654,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Sempra in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Sempra in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Sempra in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 265.2% in the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 244 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Sempra Stock Performance

SRE stock traded down $0.78 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $70.34. 338,756 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,409,257. The business has a 50-day moving average of $72.42 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.85 billion, a PE ratio of 15.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Sempra has a 52 week low of $61.90 and a 52 week high of $95.77.

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

Sempra Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This is a boost from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.67%. Sempra's payout ratio is presently 58.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SRE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Sempra from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Sempra from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Guggenheim cut their price objective on Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price target for the company from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Mizuho dropped their target price on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.31.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In other Sempra news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the company'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 transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,905 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,139,236.65. This represents a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Cynthia J. Warner purchased 700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $70.65 per share, for a total transaction of $49,455.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 8,759 shares of the company's stock, valued at $618,823.35. The trade was a 8.69 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have purchased 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676 and have sold 57,309 shares valued at $4,694,019. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.