Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Grows Stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 5.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 82,223 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 4,225 shares during the period. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in Sempra were worth $7,213,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Sempra by 9.1% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,978,605 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,587,181,000 after purchasing an additional 1,582,653 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in Sempra by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 32,940,620 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,774,974,000 after buying an additional 1,539,026 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its holdings in shares of Sempra by 201.2% in the 3rd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 620,394 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $51,882,000 after buying an additional 414,406 shares during the last quarter. Unigestion Holding SA purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,023,000. Finally, Bank of Montreal Can lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 38.3% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 1,420,045 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $118,219,000 after acquiring an additional 393,277 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Price Performance

Shares of Sempra stock opened at $81.94 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $85.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $84.44. Sempra has a 12-month low of $66.40 and a 12-month high of $95.77. The firm has a market cap of $51.90 billion, a PE ratio of 18.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.11 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $2.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.54 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 16.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.08 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that Sempra will post 4.77 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Sempra

In related news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 23,713 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 11,190 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $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 SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total transaction of $4,125,186.78. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares in the company, valued at approximately $165.88. The trade was a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays reduced their target price on Sempra from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 27th. Morgan Stanley raised Sempra from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $85.00 to $98.00 in a report on Friday, December 13th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. 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. 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 research note on Monday, October 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.20.

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.