Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Bought by DRW Securities LLC

DRW Securities LLC increased its stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 2,898.4% in the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 119,996 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 115,994 shares during the quarter. Sempra comprises about 0.3% of DRW Securities LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest position. DRW Securities LLC’s holdings in Sempra were worth $10,035,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Eastern Bank acquired a new position in Sempra in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Family Firm Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sempra in the second quarter worth about $30,000. Hollencrest Capital Management boosted its holdings in Sempra by 250.0% in the third quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 378 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Sempra in the second quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Sempra during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Stock Down 0.4 %

NYSE:SRE opened at $94.27 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $85.66 and a 200-day moving average of $80.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.71 billion, a PE ratio of 20.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.75. Sempra has a 52 week low of $66.40 and a 52 week high of $95.29.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by ($0.16). Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The company had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.54 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.08 earnings per share. Sempra’s quarterly revenue was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.77 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.63%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SRE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Sempra in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Sempra from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Sempra in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $98.00 price target for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sempra presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sempra

In other news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 23,713 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.09, for a total transaction of $2,207,443.17. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 11,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,041,677.10. The trade was a 67.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sempra 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.