Cambiar Investors LLC Buys 88,219 Shares of Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• Cambiar Investors LLC increased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 16.5% during the first quarter, now owning about 621,294 shares valued at approximately $44.3 million.
• Several other institutional investors also significantly boosted their stakes, with Partners Group Holding AG increasing its holdings by 114.1% and Cresset Asset Management LLC increasing by 1,909.0% in the same period.
• Sempra Energy's recent earnings report showed EPS of $0.89, exceeding analyst expectations, despite a revenue dip of 0.4% year-over-year.

Cambiar Investors LLC boosted its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 16.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 621,294 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 88,219 shares during the quarter. Sempra Energy comprises 1.9% of Cambiar Investors LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. Cambiar Investors LLC owned about 0.10% of Sempra Energy worth $44,336,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in Sempra Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Sempra Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Sempra Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Eastern Bank lifted its stake in Sempra Energy by 73.7% in the 1st quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 580 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Sempra Energy in the 4th quarter worth approximately $56,000. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Stock Performance

Shares of SRE traded down $1.2030 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $81.1970. 3,328,227 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,531,608. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.48. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $77.95 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $75.74. Sempra Energy has a 1 year low of $61.90 and a 1 year high of $95.77. The stock has a market cap of $52.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.32 and a beta of 0.62.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The firm had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.35 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SRE has been the topic of several research reports. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $88.00 price objective (up previously from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 price objective (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Monday, August 4th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $81.58.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,248,000. The trade was a 9.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the business'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 sale, the executive vice president owned 39,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,229,553.80. This trade represents a 11.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.