California State Teachers Retirement System Sells 179,639 Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

California State Teachers Retirement System cut its stake in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 17.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 842,513 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 179,639 shares during the period. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.13% of Sempra worth $73,905,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in Sempra during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Sempra in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Sempra in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. TCTC Holdings LLC lifted its position in shares of Sempra by 265.2% during the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SRE traded up $0.82 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $75.52. 2,830,803 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,739,094. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.23 billion, a PE ratio of 16.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.65. The company's 50 day moving average is $70.51 and its 200 day moving average is $80.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.47. Sempra has a one year low of $61.90 and a one year high of $95.77.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.47 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.73 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.13 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This is a positive change from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Sempra's payout ratio is 58.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on SRE shares. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. UBS Group downgraded shares of 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. Guggenheim lowered their target price on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Citigroup cut their price target on Sempra from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, 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. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Sempra currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.54.

Insider Activity

In other Sempra news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total value of $225,717.15. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,905 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,139,236.65. The trade was a 16.54 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 4,817 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total value of $343,114.91. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,778 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,408,786.94. This trade represents a 19.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.