Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $46.94 Million Stock Holdings in Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• Maryland State Retirement & Pension System has increased its position in Sempra Energy by 9.3%, now holding a total of approximately $46.94 million in stock, making it the fund's 16th largest holding.
• Sempra Energy reported an EPS of $0.89 for the recent quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.82, although revenue was slightly below forecasts at $3 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.645 per share, which translates to an annualized yield of 2.8%, with the dividend payout ratio currently at 62.32%.

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System grew its stake in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 9.3% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 619,453 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 52,668 shares during the period. Sempra Energy accounts for about 1.0% of Maryland State Retirement & Pension System's holdings, making the stock its 16th biggest holding. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System owned 0.10% of Sempra Energy worth $46,936,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 26.8% during the 1st quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 48,686,047 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,474,236,000 after purchasing an additional 10,278,893 shares in the last quarter. Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $192,130,000. PointState Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the 1st quarter valued at about $154,369,000. Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the 2nd quarter valued at about $160,357,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 42.7% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,647,990 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $331,681,000 after purchasing an additional 1,391,433 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 0.7%

SRE stock opened at $93.36 on Thursday. Sempra Energy has a twelve month low of $61.90 and a twelve month high of $95.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock's 50 day moving average is $83.94 and its 200-day moving average is $77.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.91 billion, a PE ratio of 22.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.66.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.35 billion. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.42% and a net margin of 20.28%.Sempra Energy's revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.89 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. Sempra Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.32%.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In related news, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total transaction of $419,399.14. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 39,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,229,553.80. This trade represents a 11.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $126,080.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,248,000. The trade was a 9.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 49,987 shares of company stock valued at $4,267,870. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $93.00 target price (up previously from $86.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Evercore ISI set a $105.00 price target on Sempra Energy and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday. Barclays increased their price target on Sempra Energy from $71.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Sempra Energy from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price target on Sempra Energy from $86.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, September 24th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $86.09.

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.

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