Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Sold by Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.

Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. cut its holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 1.8% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 36,706 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 680 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc.’s holdings in Sempra were worth $2,792,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Crestline Management LP increased its stake in shares of Sempra by 14.0% during the fourth quarter. Crestline Management LP now owns 119,174 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,906,000 after acquiring an additional 14,674 shares during the period. GSA Capital Partners LLP acquired a new position in shares of Sempra during the first quarter worth about $815,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its stake in shares of Sempra by 14.4% during the fourth quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 41,202 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $3,079,000 after acquiring an additional 5,197 shares during the period. Magnetar Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sempra during the first quarter worth about $2,293,000. Finally, Forsta AP Fonden increased its stake in shares of Sempra by 13.7% during the first quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 117,200 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $8,418,000 after acquiring an additional 14,100 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sempra Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE SRE opened at $82.97 on Monday. Sempra has a 12-month low of $63.75 and a 12-month high of $84.28. The company has a market capitalization of $52.53 billion, a PE ratio of 18.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.46 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $79.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.51.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.92 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.46 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.31% and a return on equity of 8.58%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.94 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, September 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 26th. Sempra’s payout ratio is 54.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SRE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Sempra from $90.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Sempra from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 23rd. Bank of America initiated coverage on shares of Sempra in a report on Thursday. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Sempra from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 13th. Finally, LADENBURG THALM/SH SH decreased their price objective on shares of Sempra from $81.50 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.00.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In related news, CAO Peter R. Wall sold 6,100 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 18th. The shares were 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 $1,107,357.57. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

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.