Bessemer Group Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• Bessemer Group Inc. increased its Sempra Energy stake by 0.6% in the first quarter, ending with 2.23 million shares worth about $216.9 million. Institutional investors overall now own 89.65% of the utility.
• Analyst sentiment remains mostly positive, with Sempra carrying a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $104.08. Recent opinions were mixed, however, including a downgrade from Wall Street Zen to “sell.”
• Insiders have been selling shares, including EVP Caroline Ann Winn and Director Pablo Ferrero, with about 13,900 shares sold over the last three months. The stock also recently reported Q1 EPS in line with estimates, while revenue came in below expectations.

Bessemer Group Inc. grew its holdings in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 0.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,231,728 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 13,410 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. owned 0.34% of Sempra Energy worth $216,856,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Independent Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Sempra Energy in the 1st quarter valued at $3,806,000. BCGM Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Sempra Energy during the first quarter valued at $218,000. Wealthfront Advisers LLC grew its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 19.2% in the first quarter. Wealthfront Advisers LLC now owns 44,591 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,333,000 after purchasing an additional 7,169 shares during the period. MASTERINVEST Kapitalanlage GmbH increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 6.2% during the first quarter. MASTERINVEST Kapitalanlage GmbH now owns 11,671 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,134,000 after purchasing an additional 682 shares in the last quarter. Finally, 1ST Source Bank increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 6.1% during the first quarter. 1ST Source Bank now owns 3,120 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $303,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SRE has been the topic of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Wall Street Zen lowered Sempra Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Sempra Energy from $105.00 to $103.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $101.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sempra Energy presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $104.08.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In related news, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 8,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.55, for a total value of $724,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 25,164 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,278,600.20. This represents a 24.12% 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, Director Pablo Ferrero sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.53, for a total value of $232,778.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 15,423 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,380,821.19. The trade was a 14.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 13,900 shares of company stock worth $1,261,207. Insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Sempra Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Sempra Energy stock opened at $93.14 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.69. The business's 50 day moving average price is $91.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $92.30. The company has a market cap of $60.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.57, a PEG ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 0.56. Sempra Energy has a one year low of $74.82 and a one year high of $101.04.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.51. The business had revenue of $3.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.10 billion. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.20% and a net margin of 14.31%.The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.44 EPS. Sempra Energy has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.100-5.700 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.870-5.370 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 5.12 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 25th were given a dividend of $0.6575 per share. This represents a $2.63 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 25th. Sempra Energy's payout ratio is presently 89.15%.

About Sempra Energy

Sempra Energy is a San Diego–based energy infrastructure company that develops, owns and operates businesses delivering electricity and natural gas. Its operations include regulated utility services that provide electric and gas distribution to residential, commercial and industrial customers, as well as non‑regulated infrastructure businesses that develop and manage large-scale energy assets.

The company's product and service portfolio spans electricity and natural gas delivery, transmission and storage, liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, power generation and electric transmission projects.

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