Spire (NYSE:SR) Rating Increased to Hold at StockNews.com

Spire (NYSE:SR) was upgraded by stock analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued on Tuesday.

Several other research firms have also weighed in on SR. Mizuho upgraded shares of Spire from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the company from $65.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Friday. Janney Montgomery Scott assumed coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Tuesday, December 17th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $73.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Spire from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. UBS Group increased their price objective on Spire from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 21st. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Spire from $77.00 to $75.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Spire presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $71.50.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of Spire stock opened at $66.65 on Tuesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a current ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $67.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $65.14. Spire has a 12 month low of $56.36 and a 12 month high of $73.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Paul D. Koonce purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $73.61 per share, with a total value of $73,610.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,425 shares in the company, valued at approximately $178,504.25. This trade represents a 70.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,150 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.47, for a total transaction of $77,590.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the treasurer now directly owns 2,587 shares in the company, valued at approximately $174,544.89. The trade was a 30.77 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.86% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Spire during the 3rd quarter worth $25,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Spire during the second quarter worth about $31,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in Spire by 1,318.4% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 539 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co boosted its holdings in shares of Spire by 28.6% in the 3rd quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $61,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of Spire by 38.9% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,057 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $71,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

About Spire

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.