Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Sold by Decade Renewable Partners LP

Decade Renewable Partners LP decreased its position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 48.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 45,282 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 43,263 shares during the period. Sempra comprises approximately 1.9% of Decade Renewable Partners LP's holdings, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding. Decade Renewable Partners LP's holdings in Sempra were worth $3,972,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Lindbrook Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Sempra by 5.4% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,410 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 8,194 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $719,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,585 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Sempra by 5.0% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,639 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $232,000 after buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avantax Planning Partners Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sempra by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 7,423 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $651,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Sempra Price Performance

NYSE SRE opened at $74.75 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Sempra has a 1 year low of $61.90 and a 1 year high of $95.77. The company has a market cap of $48.73 billion, a PE ratio of 16.46, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.65. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $71.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.13.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.13 earnings per share. Sempra's quarterly revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were issued a dividend of $0.645 per share. 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 3.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. Sempra's payout ratio is currently 58.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have weighed in on SRE. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $99.00 to $76.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Sempra from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. UBS Group cut Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Guggenheim dropped their price target on Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.54.

Insider Transactions at Sempra

In other news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 owns 2 shares in the company, valued at $165.88. This represents a 100.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 4,817 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,408,786.94. The trade was a 19.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, 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 company 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.

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