American Century Companies Inc. Sells 495,304 Shares of Spire Inc. $SR

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. reduced its stake in Spire Inc. by 12.7%, selling 495,304 shares during the first quarter and now holds 5.75% of the company, valued at $265.7 million.
• Spire's recent quarterly earnings report showed $0.01 earnings per share, surpassing estimates, and reflecting a 1.9% increase in revenue compared to the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.785 per share, providing a 4.1% yield to investors, with the ex-dividend date set for September 11th.

American Century Companies Inc. cut its holdings in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) by 12.7% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,395,875 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 495,304 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 5.75% of Spire worth $265,727,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Spire by 103.8% during the first 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 in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Spire by 2.6% in the first quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 177,950 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $13,925,000 after acquiring an additional 4,576 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Spire by 16.9% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,833 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $456,000 after acquiring an additional 844 shares during the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Spire in the first quarter worth about $216,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its holdings in shares of Spire by 27.4% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,938 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $230,000 after acquiring an additional 631 shares during the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently commented on SR shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Spire from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Bank of America reissued an "underperform" rating and issued a $76.00 target price (down previously from $81.00) on shares of Spire in a report on Friday, August 15th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Spire from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH upgraded shares of Spire to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reiterated an "underperform" rating on shares of Spire in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Spire presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $79.20.

Spire Trading Up 0.6%

Spire stock traded up $0.4690 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $76.0990. 54,827 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 455,863. The company has a quick ratio of 0.27, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. Spire Inc. has a 12 month low of $61.56 and a 12 month high of $79.81. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $74.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $75.09. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.45, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.66.

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

Spire Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 11th will be paid a $0.785 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 11th. This represents a $3.14 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. Spire's payout ratio is currently 67.82%.

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.