Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Short Interest Up 24.0% in October

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 14,660,000 shares, a growth of 24.0% from the October 15th total of 11,820,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 2,640,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 5.6 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on SRE shares. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Sempra in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $94.00 target price for the company. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, October 1st. Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on Sempra in a report on Thursday, October 24th. They set a "buy" rating and a $98.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Sempra from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Sempra presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $89.00.

Sempra Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of Sempra stock traded up $1.75 on Friday, reaching $92.19. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,050,145 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,903,094. The company has a market capitalization of $58.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.75. 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 $66.40 and a 52 week high of $93.12. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $84.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $79.77.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.54 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The business's revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. Sempra's dividend payout ratio is currently 54.63%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sempra

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sempra by 2.8% in the 2nd quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,963 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $377,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in Sempra by 2.8% in the second quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,983 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $379,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Sempra by 3.5% during the second quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 4,019 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $306,000 after buying an additional 137 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its position in Sempra by 1.6% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,742 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $731,000 after acquiring an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Sempra by 4.0% in the second quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,794 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $289,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

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.