Ascent Group LLC Has $2.01 Million Holdings in Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• Ascent Group LLC reduced its stake in Sempra Energy by 20.5%, selling 7,247 shares, and now holds 28,106 shares valued at approximately $2 million.
• Wellington Management Group boosted its holdings in Sempra Energy by 26.8%, acquiring over 10 million additional shares, while several other institutional investors also increased their stakes.
• Research analysts have given Sempra Energy a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target price of $82.33, following positive quarterly earnings results exceeding estimates.

Ascent Group LLC lowered its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 20.5% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 28,106 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 7,247 shares during the period. Ascent Group LLC's holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $2,006,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of SRE. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Sempra Energy by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 173,408 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $12,374,000 after buying an additional 13,433 shares in the last quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors grew its holdings in Sempra Energy by 8.0% during the first quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors now owns 49,570 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,569,000 after purchasing an additional 3,677 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 171.2% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 11,107 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $793,000 after buying an additional 7,012 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. raised its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 53.2% during the first quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 57,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $4,068,000 after purchasing an additional 19,800 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgewater Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Sempra Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $483,000. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently issued reports on SRE. Barclays increased their price objective on Sempra Energy from $71.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 price target (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $81.27.

Sempra Energy Stock Performance

SRE stock traded up $0.49 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $83.96. 3,204,840 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,453,351. Sempra Energy has a 12 month low of $61.90 and a 12 month high of $95.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $80.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.52.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.07. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.35 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.89 earnings per share. Sempra Energy's revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total transaction of $419,399.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 39,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,229,553.80. This trade represents a 11.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $126,080.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,600 shares in the company, valued at $1,248,000. This represents a 9.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Sempra Energy 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.