Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Shares Acquired by Dakota Wealth Management

Dakota Wealth Management grew its holdings in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 21.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 69,811 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 12,501 shares during the period. Dakota Wealth Management's holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $4,983,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sempra Energy in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 265.2% during 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 period. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter worth about $41,000. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

NYSE:SRE traded up $1.10 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $75.24. 3,596,642 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,875,565. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $49.05 billion, a PE ratio of 16.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.63. Sempra Energy has a twelve month low of $61.90 and a twelve month high of $95.77. The stock's 50-day moving average is $75.86 and its 200-day moving average is $76.19.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.90 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 22.15% and a return on equity of 8.55%. The company's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.34 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 26th were given a $0.645 dividend. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 26th. Sempra Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 56.70%.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In other Sempra Energy news, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total transaction of $595,193.90. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 16,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,260,117.94. The trade was a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on SRE shares. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Argus lowered shares of Sempra Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $88.00 target price (up previously from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.75.

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.