Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. Reduces Position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE)

Key Points

• Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. reduced its stake in Sempra Energy by 34.7%, now holding 23,390 shares worth approximately $1.67 million.
• Recent quarterly earnings showed Sempra Energy reporting $0.89 EPS, surpassing analyst expectations, although revenue decreased to $3 billion compared to projections of $3.35 billion.
• Research analysts have set a mixed outlook for Sempra Energy, with target prices ranging from $71.00 to $88.00, and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 34.7% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 23,390 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 12,443 shares during the quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.'s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $1,674,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of SRE. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 173,408 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $12,374,000 after buying an additional 13,433 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in 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 acquiring an additional 7,012 shares in the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. raised its holdings in Sempra Energy by 81.0% during the first quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. now owns 46,277 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,302,000 after acquiring an additional 20,707 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Sempra Energy during the first quarter worth about $483,000. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Sempra Energy during the first quarter worth about $1,099,000. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sempra Energy

In related news, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total transaction of $595,193.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,260,117.94. This trade represents a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $126,080.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 15,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,248,000. The trade was a 9.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on SRE shares. Barclays cut their target price on Sempra Energy from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $88.00 price target (up from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 price target (up from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Sempra Energy from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $81.58.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

Shares of SRE stock traded up $1.18 on Tuesday, hitting $82.08. 2,601,026 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,605,377. The firm has a market cap of $53.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.83, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.62. Sempra Energy has a 52 week low of $61.90 and a 52 week high of $95.77. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.14 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

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

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 26th were paid a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 26th. Sempra Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.32%.

About Sempra Energy

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.