Barclays PLC Grows Holdings in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) by 127.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 109,372 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 61,357 shares during the quarter. Barclays PLC’s holdings in Spire were worth $7,360,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Spire by 26.8% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 761 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Spire by 5.2% in the third quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 3,572 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $240,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Creative Planning lifted its position in shares of Spire by 2.7% in the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 7,126 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $480,000 after acquiring an additional 190 shares in the last quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co boosted its stake in shares of Spire by 28.6% in the third quarter. Missouri Trust & Investment Co now owns 900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Spire by 4.5% during the third quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 5,327 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $358,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on SR shares. StockNews.com downgraded Spire from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Friday, November 29th. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Spire from $62.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of Spire from $73.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 21st. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH lowered Spire from a “neutral” rating to a “sell” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $65.50 to $60.50 in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Bank of America began coverage on Spire in a research report on Friday, December 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $70.00 target price on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.28.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Spire news, Director Paul D. Koonce purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 purchase, the director now owns 2,425 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $178,504.25. The trade was a 70.18 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,150 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.47, for a total value of $77,590.50. Following the transaction, the treasurer now owns 2,587 shares of the company’s stock, 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 owned by corporate insiders.

Spire Trading Down 5.6 %

Shares of SR stock opened at $64.46 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $3.72 billion, a PE ratio of 14.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.57. Spire Inc. has a 1 year low of $56.36 and a 1 year high of $73.64. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $67.39 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $65.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.24, a current ratio of 0.45 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Spire Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 3rd. Investors of record on Wednesday, December 11th will be issued a dividend of $3.14 per share. This represents a $12.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 19.48%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, December 11th. This is a positive change from Spire’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Spire’s dividend payout ratio is presently 72.85%.

Spire Profile

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.