Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Purchased by Yaupon Capital Management LP

Yaupon Capital Management LP increased its stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 78.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 318,146 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 139,467 shares during the quarter. Sempra comprises approximately 1.2% of Yaupon Capital Management LP's holdings, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Yaupon Capital Management LP owned approximately 0.05% of Sempra worth $27,908,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Fayez Sarofim & Co purchased a new position in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter worth about $241,000. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,347,000. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Sempra by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 474,564 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,629,000 after acquiring an additional 5,350 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. grew its position in Sempra by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. now owns 360,211 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,598,000 after acquiring an additional 26,541 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky increased its stake in Sempra by 53.6% in the fourth quarter. Teachers Retirement System of The State of Kentucky now owns 211,061 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $18,514,000 after purchasing an additional 73,633 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Stock Up 0.3 %

Sempra stock traded up $0.23 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $74.75. The stock had a trading volume of 4,122,952 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,719,751. Sempra has a 52 week low of $61.90 and a 52 week high of $95.77. The company has a market cap of $48.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.46, a PEG 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. The business's 50 day moving average price is $71.53 and its 200-day moving average price is $81.18.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.03. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The company had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. Sempra's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. This is a boost from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.45%. Sempra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.37%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total value of $225,717.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 13,905 shares in the company, valued at $1,139,236.65. This trade represents a 16.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total value of $4,125,186.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2 shares in the company, valued at approximately $165.88. The trade was a 100.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders acquired 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676 and sold 57,309 shares valued at $4,694,019. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SRE has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Argus lowered shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley set a $89.00 price target on Sempra and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. The Goldman Sachs Group cut Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Sempra from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Sempra has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $80.54.

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.