Unigestion Holding SA Sells 62,689 Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Unigestion Holding SA decreased its position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 15.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 332,366 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 62,689 shares during the quarter. Sempra comprises about 1.7% of Unigestion Holding SA's investment portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Unigestion Holding SA owned about 0.05% of Sempra worth $29,155,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sempra during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sempra during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its holdings in Sempra by 265.2% in the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Sempra Trading Up 0.9 %

NYSE SRE traded up $0.57 on Friday, hitting $67.47. 1,218,173 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,666,099. Sempra has a twelve month low of $61.90 and a twelve month high of $95.77. The company's 50 day moving average price is $73.86 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.47.

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Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 firm had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.73 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The company's revenue was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.13 EPS. Analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th will be paid a $0.645 dividend. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.82%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 20th. This is a positive change from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Sempra's dividend payout ratio is currently 58.37%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Pablo Ferrero acquired 2,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $70.96 per share, for a total transaction of $184,496.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 15,649 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,110,453.04. This represents a 19.92 % increase in their position. The purchase 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 the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,778 shares in the company, 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. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 9,319 shares of company stock worth $651,676 and sold 57,309 shares worth $4,694,019. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on SRE. Citigroup decreased their price target on Sempra from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Sempra from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 20th. Barclays downgraded shares of Sempra from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut 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. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.46.

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.