Bank of Montreal Can Boosts Holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Bank of Montreal Can raised its position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 38.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,420,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 393,277 shares during the period. Bank of Montreal Can owned 0.22% of Sempra worth $118,219,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 23,713 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.09, for a total value of $2,207,443.17. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 11,190 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,041,677.10. This trade represents a 67.94 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sempra Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SRE opened at $93.28 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.52. The company’s fifty day moving average is $86.07 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.97. Sempra has a one year low of $66.40 and a one year high of $95.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.55, a PEG ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.75.

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

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be given a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.66%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.63%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Sempra from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Sempra in a research note on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.00.

About Sempra

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.