Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Director Jennifer Kirk Purchases 1,000 Shares of Stock

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Director Jennifer Kirk acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $93.44 per share, for a total transaction of $93,440.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $93,440. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website.

Sempra Energy Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of Sempra Energy stock opened at $95.20 on Friday. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $61.90 and a 52-week high of $97.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.59. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $90.74 and a 200-day moving average of $89.57. The stock has a market cap of $62.19 billion, a PE ratio of 34.49, a PEG ratio of 3.49 and a beta of 0.73.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.16. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 13.27% and a return on equity of 8.22%. The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.82 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.50 EPS. The business’s revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 19th will be given a dividend of $0.6575 per share. This represents a $2.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 19th. This is a positive change from Sempra Energy’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 95.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on SRE. Argus upgraded Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Sempra Energy from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. UBS Group reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $100.00 target price (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Friday, March 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $100.00.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sempra Energy

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. World Investment Advisors boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 81.1% in the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 6,734 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $595,000 after buying an additional 3,016 shares in the last quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 15.7% during the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 516,938 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $45,641,000 after acquiring an additional 70,055 shares in the last quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 2,483,473 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $219,295,000 after acquiring an additional 234,894 shares during the last quarter. Bayban acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Finally, Pure Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 29.2% in the 4th quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 46,776 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $4,130,000 after purchasing an additional 10,584 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

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.