International Assets Investment Management LLC Invests $262,000 in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE)

International Assets Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 3,678 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $262,000.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings in Sempra Energy by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,410 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $211,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 8,194 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $719,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV grew its holdings in Sempra Energy by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 6,195 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $543,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,639 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the period. Finally, Avantax Planning Partners Inc. raised its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 2.0% during the fourth quarter. Avantax Planning Partners Inc. now owns 7,423 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $651,000 after acquiring an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have issued reports on SRE. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Argus lowered Sempra Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $88.00 price target (up from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Sempra Energy from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.83.

Sempra Energy Stock Up 0.5%

NYSE SRE opened at $75.32 on Friday. Sempra Energy has a 52 week low of $61.90 and a 52 week high of $95.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company has a fifty day moving average of $75.72 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.55, a PEG ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.64.

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

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The business 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 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. Sempra Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 56.70%.

Insider Transactions at Sempra Energy

In other Sempra Energy news, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 4,817 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total transaction of $343,114.91. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 19,778 shares in the company, valued at $1,408,786.94. This represents a 19.59% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total value of $595,193.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 16,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,260,117.94. This represents a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Sempra Energy Company Profile

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.

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