Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC Buys New Stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 68,406 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $6,001,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter worth about $1,535,000,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Sempra by 11.9% in 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 during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 2,758,037 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in Sempra by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 20,489,918 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,797,376,000 after acquiring an additional 1,511,313 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at $123,614,000. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Price Performance

NYSE:SRE opened at $74.75 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $48.73 billion, a PE ratio of 16.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.65. The company's 50-day moving average price is $71.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $81.13. 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 12 month low of $61.90 and a 12 month high of $95.77.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.03. The business 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%. Sempra's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.13 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were paid a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This is an increase from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.45%. Sempra's payout ratio is currently 58.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group lowered shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on Sempra from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Barclays downgraded Sempra from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $95.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $89.00 target price on Sempra and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. 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, Sempra currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.54.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total value of $4,125,186.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 2 shares in the company, valued at $165.88. This trade represents a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Pablo Ferrero bought 2,600 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $70.96 per share, for a total transaction of $184,496.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 15,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,110,453.04. This trade represents a 19.92 % increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over 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 owned by insiders.

About Sempra

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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