Spire (NYSE:SR) Lowered to Sell Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Spire (NYSE:SR - Free Report) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Spire to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Janney Montgomery Scott began coverage on Spire in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $73.00 price target on the stock. Mizuho increased their price objective on Spire from $76.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Spire from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $72.00 to $85.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Spire from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $76.00.

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Spire Price Performance

Shares of SR traded up $0.69 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $78.18. The stock had a trading volume of 508,635 shares, compared to its average volume of 378,560. The company has a market capitalization of $4.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.21. Spire has a 12-month low of $57.27 and a 12-month high of $78.83. The company's 50-day moving average is $74.24 and its 200 day moving average is $69.56.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.42 by ($0.08). Spire had a return on equity of 7.88% and a net margin of 9.70%. On average, equities analysts predict that Spire will post 4.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Spire Cuts Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 11th will be given a dividend of $0.785 per share. This represents a $3.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, March 11th. Spire's dividend payout ratio is currently 76.03%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Spire by 5.5% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,385,452 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $93,244,000 after purchasing an additional 71,798 shares in the last quarter. Cynosure Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Spire in the 3rd quarter worth about $4,067,000. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Spire during the 3rd quarter valued at about $790,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Spire by 4.7% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 805,932 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $54,231,000 after acquiring an additional 36,214 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Spire by 48.2% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,307 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $156,000 after purchasing an additional 750 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company's stock.

Spire Company Profile

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.