Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, six have assigned a buy recommendation and one has assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $99.20.

SRE has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $101.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Friday, February 20th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $99.00 price target (up from $80.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, November 24th. UBS Group reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $100.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays set a $95.00 target price on Sempra Energy and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Sempra Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, November 8th.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of SRE opened at $95.35 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The business’s 50 day moving average is $89.96 and its 200 day moving average is $89.02. Sempra Energy has a 12-month low of $61.90 and a 12-month high of $97.44. The company has a market capitalization of $62.29 billion, a PE ratio of 34.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.58 and a beta of 0.73.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.16. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 13.27% and a return on equity of 8.22%. The company had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.82 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.50 earnings per share. Sempra Energy’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.6575 per share. This represents a $2.63 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 19th. This is a boost from Sempra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 93.48%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 51.2% in the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 375 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 57.7% during the fourth quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 347 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its stake in Sempra Energy by 245.1% in the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sempra Energy

Sempra Energy is a San Diego–based energy infrastructure company that develops, owns and operates businesses delivering electricity and natural gas. Its operations include regulated utility services that provide electric and gas distribution to residential, commercial and industrial customers, as well as non‑regulated infrastructure businesses that develop and manage large-scale energy assets.

The company’s product and service portfolio spans electricity and natural gas delivery, transmission and storage, liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, power generation and electric transmission projects.