Sempra (NYSE:SRE) PT Raised to $96.00 at BMO Capital Markets

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) had its price objective increased by BMO Capital Markets from $93.00 to $96.00 in a research report released on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. They currently have an outperform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Other analysts also recently issued research reports about the company. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Sempra from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 7th. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Sempra in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Sempra from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $87.55.

Sempra Stock Performance

Shares of SRE opened at $85.77 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.31 billion, a PE ratio of 18.33, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $82.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $77.97. Sempra has a 52-week low of $66.40 and a 52-week high of $86.57.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.03). Sempra had a net margin of 22.31% and a return on equity of 8.58%. The company had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.46 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.94 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were given a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, September 26th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.89%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 52.99%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sempra by 89.7% in the 3rd quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 248,536 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $20,939,000 after purchasing an additional 117,543 shares during the period. TCI Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Sempra during the third quarter valued at about $239,000. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. bought a new position in shares of Sempra in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $447,000. State of Alaska Department of Revenue grew its holdings in Sempra by 5.5% during the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 74,291 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $6,212,000 after purchasing an additional 3,865 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its position in shares of Sempra by 4.7% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 142,001 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $11,876,000 after purchasing an additional 6,380 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.