Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Acquired by Czech National Bank

Czech National Bank increased its position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 5.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 145,482 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 8,148 shares during the period. Czech National Bank's holdings in Sempra were worth $10,382,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SRE. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its position in shares of Sempra by 8.8% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 3,428,132 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $286,695,000 after buying an additional 278,183 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,880,000. Crews Bank & Trust purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at about $570,000. Finally, Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its position in shares of Sempra by 240.3% during the 4th quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 3,931 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $345,000 after buying an additional 2,776 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Pablo Ferrero bought 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, March 17th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $70.96 per share, for a total transaction of $184,496.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 15,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,110,453.04. The trade was a 19.92% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the firm'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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 8,619 shares of company stock worth $602,221. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Sempra Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of NYSE:SRE traded down $0.62 during trading on Thursday, reaching $75.81. 2,616,890 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,769,545. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.42 billion, a PE ratio of 16.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.63. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $73.63 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.22. Sempra has a 12-month low of $61.90 and a 12-month high of $95.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.52 and a quick ratio of 0.47.

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

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.645 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 26th. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. Sempra's dividend payout ratio is presently 56.70%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Mizuho decreased their target price on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays cut shares of Sempra from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $95.00 to $72.00 in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Morgan Stanley set a $87.00 target price on shares of Sempra and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Guggenheim decreased their target price on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Sempra from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.75.

About Sempra

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.