BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp Has $48.86 Million Stock Holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 39.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 557,042 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 156,448 shares during the period. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp owned 0.09% of Sempra worth $48,864,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SRE. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Sempra in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Sempra in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Sempra in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. TCTC Holdings LLC grew its position in Sempra by 265.2% in the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Sempra in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Sempra Price Performance

SRE stock traded up $0.96 on Friday, hitting $77.71. 3,272,360 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,747,338. Sempra has a 1-year low of $61.90 and a 1-year high of $95.77. The stock has a market cap of $50.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.12, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.63. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $72.30 and a 200-day moving average of $80.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.12. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The business had revenue of $3.80 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.34 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The firm 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. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 26th. Sempra's dividend payout ratio is presently 56.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on SRE. The Goldman Sachs Group cut shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $99.00 to $76.00 in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Sempra from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. UBS Group lowered shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Argus lowered shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Sempra 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 eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.62.

Insider Activity at Sempra

In other news, Director Michael N. Mears purchased 1,000 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $67.70 per share, for a total transaction of $67,700.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 5,000 shares in the company, valued at $338,500. The trade was a 25.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now owns 16,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,260,117.94. This trade represents a 32.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders acquired a total of 9,319 shares of company stock valued at $651,676 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Sempra 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.