29,700 Shares in Spire Inc. $SR Purchased by Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC purchased 29,700 shares of Spire Inc., valued at approximately $2.168 million, representing a 0.05% ownership stake in the company as of the last reporting period.
• Spire's recent earnings report showed an EPS of $0.01, exceeding estimates, with revenue of $421.90 million, a year-over-year increase of 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year.
• Spire has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.785 per share, yielding 3.9%, with a payout ratio of 67.82%, indicating consistent shareholder returns.

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 29,700 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,168,000. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC owned 0.05% of Spire at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Spire by 103.8% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 803 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $63,000 after buying an additional 409 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in Spire by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 177,950 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $13,925,000 after purchasing an additional 4,576 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its position in Spire by 16.9% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,833 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $456,000 after purchasing an additional 844 shares during the period. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Spire during the 1st quarter valued at about $216,000. Finally, KBC Group NV increased its position in Spire by 27.4% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,938 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $230,000 after purchasing an additional 631 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company's stock.

Spire Stock Down 1.1%

NYSE:SR opened at $81.37 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $4.80 billion, a PE ratio of 17.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.69. Spire Inc. has a twelve month low of $61.56 and a twelve month high of $83.15. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. The company's 50 day moving average is $76.83 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.70.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.10. The company had revenue of $421.90 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $417.27 million. Spire had a net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 8.66%. Spire's revenue was up 1.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned ($0.14) EPS. Spire has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.400-4.60 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Spire Inc. will post 4.5 EPS for the current year.

Spire Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 11th were given a dividend of $0.785 per share. This represents a $3.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 11th. Spire's payout ratio is currently 67.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SR has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America reissued an "underperform" rating and set a $76.00 target price (down previously from $81.00) on shares of Spire in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Spire from $81.00 to $76.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $81.00 price target on shares of Spire and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group set a $92.00 price target on shares of Spire and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Spire in a report on Saturday, September 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Spire has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.00.

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.

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