Groupama Asset Managment Acquires 175,518 Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Groupama Asset Managment increased its holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 36.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 650,772 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 175,518 shares during the quarter. Sempra makes up 1.1% of Groupama Asset Managment’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest holding. Groupama Asset Managment owned approximately 0.10% of Sempra worth $54,424,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Sempra in the third quarter worth $28,000. Hollencrest Capital Management boosted its position in Sempra by 250.0% during the third quarter. Hollencrest Capital Management now owns 378 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 270 shares during the last quarter. Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in Sempra during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Sempra during the second quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in Sempra during the second quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Trading Down 1.5 %

SRE opened at $89.60 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.47. Sempra has a fifty-two week low of $66.40 and a fifty-two week high of $95.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $56.75 billion, a PE ratio of 19.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.77. The company’s 50-day moving average is $87.56 and its 200 day moving average is $81.80.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.54 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.77%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is presently 54.63%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have commented on SRE. Bank of America began coverage on shares of Sempra in a research report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price target on the stock. 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 report on Wednesday, September 25th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of Sempra in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. They set a “buy” rating and a $98.00 price target on the stock. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Sempra from $89.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 2nd. Finally, BMO Capital Markets upped their price objective on shares of Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.91.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sempra news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 23,713 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.09, for a total value of $2,207,443.17. Following the completion of the sale, 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 position. The transaction 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.