Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. Buys 17,318 Shares of Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• Mirae Asset boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 20.3% in Q4, buying an additional 17,318 shares to hold 102,652 shares worth about $9.06 million per its latest SEC filing.
• Wall Street sentiment is broadly positive with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $101.64, as several firms raised targets (JPMorgan to $106, UBS to $100) and multiple analysts maintain buy/overweight ratings.
• Sempra raised its quarterly dividend to $0.6575 (annualized $2.63, yield ~2.8%) and reported quarterly EPS of $1.28, beating estimates of $1.12, though revenue slightly missed expectations; the payout ratio is high at 95.29%.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 20.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 102,652 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 17,318 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.'s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $9,063,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SRE. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Sempra Energy by 14.2% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,725,594 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,813,784,000 after acquiring an additional 9,396,652 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its position in Sempra Energy by 106.3% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,428,007 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $938,325,000 after acquiring an additional 5,374,277 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors grew its position in Sempra Energy by 9.2% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 54,071,206 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,865,115,000 after acquiring an additional 4,572,312 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Sempra Energy by 40.1% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,419,115 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $937,512,000 after acquiring an additional 2,984,409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. grew its position in Sempra Energy by 20,627.9% during the third quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 1,898,675 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $170,842,000 after acquiring an additional 1,889,515 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Sempra Energy news, Director Richard J. Mark purchased 2,692 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average price of $93.30 per share, with a total value of $251,163.60. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 17,376 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,621,180.80. The trade was a 18.33% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Jennifer M. Kirk purchased 1,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $93.44 per share, with a total value of $93,440.00. Following the purchase, the director directly owned 1,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $93,440. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have bought 6,192 shares of company stock valued at $576,979 and have sold 7,539 shares valued at $706,906. Insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on SRE shares. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $100.00 price target (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Friday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $98.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sempra Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Sunday, March 29th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $101.00 price target on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Sempra Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $101.64.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of Sempra Energy stock opened at $94.00 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 1.57 and a current ratio of 1.59. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $69.08 and a 52-week high of $101.04. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.06, a P/E/G ratio of 3.55 and a beta of 0.67. The company's 50 day moving average price is $94.91 and its 200-day moving average price is $91.87.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.12 by $0.16. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.22% and a net margin of 13.27%.The company had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.82 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.50 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 19th were paid a $0.6575 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 19th. This is a positive change from Sempra Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Sempra Energy's payout ratio is 95.29%.

About Sempra Energy

Sempra Energy is a San Diego–based energy infrastructure company that develops, owns and operates businesses delivering electricity and natural gas. Its operations include regulated utility services that provide electric and gas distribution to residential, commercial and industrial customers, as well as non‑regulated infrastructure businesses that develop and manage large-scale energy assets.

The company's product and service portfolio spans electricity and natural gas delivery, transmission and storage, liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, power generation and electric transmission projects.

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