Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Position Boosted by Alaska Permanent Fund Corp

Alaska Permanent Fund Corp grew its holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,574 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 199 shares during the period. Alaska Permanent Fund Corp’s holdings in Sempra were worth $1,550,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Kestra Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Sempra by 53.2% in the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 18,044 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,228,000 after acquiring an additional 6,263 shares during the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Sempra in the 3rd quarter worth about $515,000. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 3rd quarter worth about $1,662,000. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 95.9% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 29,442 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $2,008,000 after buying an additional 14,414 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sempra

In other news, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 6,100 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total transaction of $457,927.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 14,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,107,357.57. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Sempra news, Director Richard J. Mark bought 1,925 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 17th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $77.97 per share, with a total value of $150,092.25. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 5,420 shares in the company, valued at approximately $422,597.40. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 6,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $75.07, for a total transaction of $457,927.00. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 14,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,107,357.57. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of SRE stock opened at $75.49 on Friday. Sempra has a 12 month low of $63.75 and a 12 month high of $78.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.62 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.87. The firm has a market cap of $47.57 billion, a PE ratio of 16.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.61 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $74.30 and a 200-day moving average of $72.89.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.34 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.35 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.64 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.58 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 20.99% and a return on equity of 8.95%. Sempra’s revenue for the quarter was down 44.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.46 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.8 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 27th will be paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 27th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is 54.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SRE has been the topic of several recent research reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Sempra from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH reduced their price objective on shares of Sempra from $81.50 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 29th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Sempra from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $82.00 target price on shares of Sempra in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Sempra from $79.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.00.

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.