Skopos Labs Inc. Makes New Investment in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Skopos Labs Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 4,050 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $303,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Monetary Management Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 390 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares in the last quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 100.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Spire Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 85.6% in the 3rd quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 412 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Sempra in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In related news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 50,703 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.92, for a total value of $3,595,856.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares in the company, valued at approximately $141.84. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Diana L. Day sold 3,937 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.21, for a total transaction of $280,353.77. Following the sale, the insider now owns 18,145 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,292,105.45. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 50,703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.92, for a total value of $3,595,856.76. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2 shares in the company, valued at approximately $141.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 122,432 shares of company stock worth $8,668,035. 0.24% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Sempra Trading Down 0.0 %

Shares of SRE stock traded down $0.02 on Friday, reaching $75.84. The company had a trading volume of 1,870,848 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,359,791. The company has a current ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The stock has a market cap of $48.00 billion, a PE ratio of 16.80, a PEG ratio of 2.62 and a beta of 0.70. The company has a 50-day moving average of $72.40 and a 200-day moving average of $72.44. Sempra has a 12 month low of $63.75 and a 12 month high of $78.83.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.01). Sempra had a net margin of 20.99% and a return on equity of 8.95%. The business had revenue of $3.64 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.46 earnings per share. Sempra’s revenue for the quarter was down 44.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 27th will be given a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 27th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.27%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.93%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SRE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Sempra from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 21st. Mizuho lifted their price target on Sempra from $79.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, May 17th. StockNews.com cut Sempra from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $82.00 price target on shares of Sempra in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Sempra from $79.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.86.

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.