Advisor Resource Council Purchases New Stake in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE)

Advisor Resource Council acquired a new position in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 26,547 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,894,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Spirit of America Management Corp NY lifted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 16.8% in the 1st quarter. Spirit of America Management Corp NY now owns 16,300 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,163,000 after buying an additional 2,350 shares during the last quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 1.5% during the first quarter. Trivant Custom Portfolio Group LLC now owns 16,528 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,179,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in Sempra Energy by 33.2% in the first quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 96,218 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $6,865,000 after acquiring an additional 24,005 shares during the last quarter. PUREfi Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Sempra Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $236,000. Finally, Seed Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the first quarter valued at approximately $243,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 0.4%

Sempra Energy stock opened at $74.09 on Friday. Sempra Energy has a 52 week low of $61.90 and a 52 week high of $95.77. The stock has a market cap of $48.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.28, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 0.64. The company's 50-day moving average price is $75.23 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $77.80. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.12. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 22.15% and a return on equity of 8.55%. The business had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.34 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.645 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 26th. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.48%. Sempra Energy's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.70%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 4,817 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total transaction of $343,114.91. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,778 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,408,786.94. This trade represents a 19.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total value of $595,193.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 16,969 shares in the company, valued at $1,260,117.94. The trade was a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on SRE. Barclays downgraded Sempra Energy from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $72.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th. UBS Group cut Sempra Energy from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their target price for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Citigroup lowered their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Guggenheim reduced their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.83.

Sempra Energy 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.

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