Geode Capital Management LLC Acquires 47,106 Shares of Spire Inc. $SR

Key Points

• Geode Capital Management increased its stake in Spire by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, buying 47,106 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 1,579,856 shares worth about $130.7 million.
• Spire continues to attract broad institutional investment, with hedge funds and asset managers owning 87.36% of the company. Other major holders recently boosted positions, including Vanguard, Invesco, and UBS.
• The company recently posted better-than-expected EPS of $3.76, announced a quarterly dividend of $0.825 per share, and saw mixed analyst sentiment with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a price target of $96.22.

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,579,856 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 47,106 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.67% of Spire worth $130,672,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SR. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. grew its holdings in Spire by 158.1% during the second quarter. Adage Capital Partners GP L.L.C. now owns 1,000,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $72,990,000 after purchasing an additional 612,500 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Spire by 44.4% in the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 846,263 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $68,987,000 after buying an additional 260,344 shares during the period. UBS Group AG increased its stake in Spire by 53.0% in the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 497,657 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $40,569,000 after buying an additional 172,493 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in Spire by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,411,042 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $522,628,000 after buying an additional 123,584 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new stake in Spire in the 1st quarter valued at $9,636,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have commented on SR. Wells Fargo & Company began coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Monday, May 11th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $96.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Spire from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Spire from $106.00 to $103.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $96.00 price objective on shares of Spire in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Tuesday, May 26th. They set a "peer perform" rating on the stock. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Spire has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $96.22.

Insider Activity at Spire

In related news, Director Paul D. Koonce bought 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $85.81 per share, with a total value of $171,620.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 7,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $600,670. The trade was a 40.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 2.26% of the company's stock.

Spire Stock Down 0.0%

SR stock opened at $81.07 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Spire Inc. has a 12 month low of $71.24 and a 12 month high of $95.31. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $88.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $87.16.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $3.76 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.72 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.07 billion. Spire had a net margin of 13.97% and a return on equity of 9.49%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $3.60 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Spire Inc. will post 4.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Spire Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be issued a $0.825 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. Spire's dividend payout ratio is 58.00%.

Spire Profile

Spire Inc NYSE: SR, formerly known as The Laclede Group, is a regulated natural gas distribution company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Through its three operating divisions—Spire Missouri, Spire Alabama and Spire Mississippi—the company delivers natural gas to more than 1.7 million residential, commercial and industrial customers. Spire's service territory spans key markets in the central and southern United States, including metropolitan St. Louis, central Alabama and central Mississippi.

Founded in 1857 as the Laclede Gas Light Company, the business has grown through strategic acquisitions, notably Alabama Gas Corporation in 2013 and Mississippi Gas in 2016.

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