Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Acquired by CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co

CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co lifted its holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 9.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 882,472 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 75,073 shares during the quarter. CANADA LIFE ASSURANCE Co owned approximately 0.14% of Sempra worth $77,362,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Sempra in the 4th quarter worth about $1,535,000,000. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its stake in shares of Sempra by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 38,407,154 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,369,076,000 after acquiring an additional 4,082,261 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Sempra by 70.6% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,666,240 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $584,763,000 after purchasing an additional 2,758,037 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Sempra by 8.0% during the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 20,489,918 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,797,376,000 after purchasing an additional 1,511,313 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra in the 4th quarter worth $123,614,000. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Price Performance

Shares of SRE traded up $0.48 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $72.79. 996,929 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,691,225. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $71.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.29. Sempra has a 12-month low of $61.90 and a 12-month high of $95.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.52. The company has a market cap of $47.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.65.

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

Sempra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $0.645 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.54%. This is a positive change from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Sempra's dividend payout ratio is currently 58.37%.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In other news, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 4,817 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total value of $343,114.91. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,408,786.94. This represents a 19.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, 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 completion of 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders purchased 9,319 shares of company stock worth $651,676 and sold 57,309 shares worth $4,694,019. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim lowered 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. The Goldman Sachs Group downgraded shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Sempra from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Argus lowered Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.31.

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.