BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. Acquires Shares of 188,347 Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. disclosed a new stake in Sempra Energy, buying 188,347 shares valued at about $16.6 million in the fourth quarter.
• Sempra reported Q1 EPS of $1.51, matching analyst expectations, but revenue of $3.66 billion came in below estimates and was down 3.9% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.6575 per share, or $2.63 annually, implying a 3.0% yield; analysts currently rate the stock Moderate Buy with an average target price of $102.67.

BW Gestao de Investimentos Ltda. acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund acquired 188,347 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $16,629,000.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in SRE. Ares Financial Consulting LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Key Financial Inc grew its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 73.6% during the 4th quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 361 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares during the period. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 83.0% during the 4th quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 355 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the period. Board of the Pension Protection Fund bought a new position in Sempra Energy in the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC boosted its holdings in Sempra Energy by 88.8% in the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 406 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 191 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 2.1%

NYSE SRE opened at $87.27 on Tuesday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $93.97 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.85. The stock has a market cap of $57.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.58, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.57. Sempra Energy has a 12-month low of $73.06 and a 12-month high of $101.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.69, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.51. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 14.31% and a return on equity of 8.20%. The business had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.44 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. 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, analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 5.11 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 25th will be issued a $0.6575 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 25th. This represents a $2.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Sempra Energy's payout ratio is presently 89.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on SRE. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $100.00 price target (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Argus upgraded shares of Sempra Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. BMO Capital Markets decreased their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $105.00 to $103.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $118.00 price target on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, April 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $102.67.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 4,872 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.58, for a total value of $451,049.76. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 39,029 shares in the company, valued at $3,613,304.82. This trade represents a 11.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Diana L. Day sold 3,300 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.13, for a total transaction of $304,029.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 22,870 shares in the company, valued at $2,107,013.10. The trade was a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. In the last ninety days, insiders have bought 6,192 shares of company stock valued at $576,979 and have sold 13,439 shares valued at $1,243,713. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

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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