Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Acquired by Meeder Advisory Services Inc.

Meeder Advisory Services Inc. boosted its holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 6.4% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,110 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 729 shares during the period. Meeder Advisory Services Inc.’s holdings in Sempra were worth $1,013,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Holistic Financial Partners acquired a new position in shares of Sempra in the 3rd quarter valued at $211,000. Quest Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Sempra in the 3rd quarter valued at about $81,000. AMG National Trust Bank raised its holdings in Sempra by 7.8% in the 3rd quarter. AMG National Trust Bank now owns 5,208 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $436,000 after buying an additional 375 shares during the period. Phillips Financial Management LLC purchased a new position in Sempra during the third quarter worth about $200,000. Finally, Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Sempra by 34.9% during the third quarter. Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors LP now owns 1,020,769 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $85,367,000 after acquiring an additional 264,064 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $93.37 on Wednesday. Sempra has a fifty-two week low of $66.40 and a fifty-two week high of $93.44. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $84.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market cap of $59.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.75.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last released 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 firm had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.54 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. Sempra’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.