Peak Financial Advisors LLC Purchases 17,400 Shares of Sempra Energy $SRE

Peak Financial Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 190.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 26,552 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 17,400 shares during the period. Sempra Energy makes up approximately 1.1% of Peak Financial Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest position. Peak Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $2,344,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. Activest Wealth Management boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 74.6% in the third quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 391 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 167 shares in the last quarter. Board of the Pension Protection Fund acquired a new stake in Sempra Energy in the fourth quarter valued at about $35,000. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. grew its position in Sempra Energy by 117.4% in the third quarter. SOA Wealth Advisors LLC. now owns 424 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $38,000 after acquiring an additional 229 shares during the last quarter. Finally, JPL Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Sempra Energy in the third quarter valued at about $41,000. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Stock Performance

Sempra Energy stock opened at $95.30 on Thursday. The business has a 50 day moving average of $91.71 and a 200-day moving average of $90.33. The company has a market capitalization of $62.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.53, a P/E/G ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 0.73. Sempra Energy has a 1 year low of $61.90 and a 1 year high of $97.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.57.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.82 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.50 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 19th will be paid a $0.6575 dividend. This is a positive change from Sempra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.63 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 19th. Sempra Energy’s payout ratio is presently 95.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on SRE. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. UBS Group reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $100.00 price objective (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Friday, March 6th. Argus raised shares of Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $101.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $98.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.73.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sempra Energy news, CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 4,872 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.58, for a total transaction of $451,049.76. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 39,029 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,613,304.82. The trade was a 11.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Richard J. Mark purchased 2,692 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $93.30 per share, for a total transaction of $251,163.60. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 17,376 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,621,180.80. The trade was a 18.33% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have purchased a total of 6,192 shares of company stock valued at $576,979 over the last quarter. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.