Evercore ISI Issues Positive Forecast for Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Stock Price

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) had its price target boosted by Evercore ISI from $84.00 to $88.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Evercore ISI currently has an outperform rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on SRE. 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 note on Monday, October 21st. Bank of America started coverage on Sempra in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price target for the company. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on shares of Sempra in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $98.00 price objective for the company. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target 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. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.00.

Sempra Stock Performance

Shares of SRE stock traded up $1.83 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $91.59. The company had a trading volume of 1,964,326 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,887,472. The firm has a market cap of $57.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.75. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $83.26 and a 200-day moving average price of $79.00. Sempra has a one year low of $66.40 and a one year high of $91.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.52.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.06 by ($0.17). The firm had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.54 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.01%. Sempra’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.08 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.71%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.63%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sempra

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in Sempra by 2.8% during the second quarter. Perennial Investment Advisors LLC now owns 4,963 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $377,000 after buying an additional 134 shares during the period. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Sempra by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,983 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $379,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Marcum Wealth LLC increased its position in Sempra by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 4,019 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $306,000 after acquiring an additional 137 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Sempra by 1.6% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,742 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $731,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Sempra by 4.0% during the 2nd quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,794 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $289,000 after buying an additional 147 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sempra Company 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.