Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Shares Acquired by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Key Points

• Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. has increased its stake in Sempra Energy by 14.1%, now owning approximately 1.3 million shares worth about $93.2 million.
• Sempra Energy reported earnings per share (EPS) of $0.89, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.82, while its revenue reached $3 billion for the quarter.
• Insiders have recently sold shares, with notable transactions including SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque selling 1,576 shares at an average price of $80.00.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 14.1% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,305,670 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 161,839 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.20% of Sempra Energy worth $93,173,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 8,194 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $719,000 after buying an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV raised its position in Sempra Energy by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 6,195 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $543,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. raised its position in Sempra Energy by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,639 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $232,000 after buying an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. grew its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. now owns 8,169 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $583,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. Finally, Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft grew its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Baader Bank Aktiengesellschaft now owns 2,988 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $211,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In other Sempra Energy news, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total value of $595,193.90. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 16,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,260,117.94. This trade represents 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 this hyperlink. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $126,080.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,600 shares in the company, valued at $1,248,000. This represents a 9.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SRE has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Sempra Energy from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Citigroup restated a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 price target (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $88.00 price target (up previously from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Sempra Energy from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $81.58.

Sempra Energy Stock Up 0.8%

Sempra Energy stock traded up $0.68 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $81.58. The company's stock had a trading volume of 880,942 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,587,542. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $77.14 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $61.90 and a 52-week high of $95.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.70, a PEG ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.62.

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

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 26th were issued a $0.645 dividend. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 26th. Sempra Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 62.32%.

Sempra Energy 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.