Moore Capital Management LP Makes New $4.59 Million Investment in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Moore Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 52,369 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,594,000.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Lionshead Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at $346,000. Interval Partners LP bought a new stake in Sempra during the fourth quarter worth about $3,460,000. Investor s Fiduciary Advisor Network LLC bought a new stake in Sempra during the 4th quarter worth approximately $452,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in Sempra by 71.3% during the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 4,651,923 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $408,069,000 after acquiring an additional 1,936,865 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ethic Inc. grew its position in Sempra by 108.2% during the 4th quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 159,788 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $14,017,000 after acquiring an additional 83,028 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SRE has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Sempra from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley set a $89.00 price objective on Sempra and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Argus lowered Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. UBS Group lowered Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $80.77.

Sempra Trading Up 1.5%

Sempra stock traded up $1.18 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $77.65. 3,336,899 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,735,682. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.10, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.63. Sempra has a fifty-two week low of $61.90 and a fifty-two week high of $95.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $71.34 and its 200-day simple moving average is $80.27.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.90 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The company's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.34 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 26th. Sempra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.70%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Cynthia J. Warner acquired 700 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $70.65 per share, for a total transaction of $49,455.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,759 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $618,823.35. The trade was a 8.69% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Michael N. Mears acquired 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The shares were bought at an average price of $67.70 per share, with a total value of $67,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 5,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $338,500. The trade was a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders purchased 9,319 shares of company stock worth $651,676 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

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.