M&T Bank Corp Increases Stock Position in Spire Inc. $SR

Key Points

• M&T Bank Corp increased its stake in Spire by 303% in Q4, adding 15,898 shares to hold 21,144 shares valued at $1.749 million, and institutional investors now own 87.36% of the company.
• Spire beat EPS estimates with $1.77 for the quarter (vs. $1.62 consensus) and reported revenue up 13.9% year-over-year, while guiding FY2026 EPS to 5.250–5.450 and FY2027 EPS to 5.650–5.850.
• The company pays a quarterly dividend of $0.825 (annualized $3.30) for a 3.6% yield, has a market cap of $5.37 billion and a P/E of 19.74, and carries a MarketBeat consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $93.80.

M&T Bank Corp grew its position in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) by 303.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 21,144 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,898 shares during the period. M&T Bank Corp's holdings in Spire were worth $1,749,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in Spire by 10.0% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 212,438 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $16,623,000 after buying an additional 19,373 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new position in Spire during the first quarter valued at about $9,636,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its position in Spire by 1,031.5% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 611 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 557 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Spire by 1.5% during the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 585,919 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $42,766,000 after buying an additional 8,726 shares during the period. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in Spire by 66.9% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,699 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $124,000 after buying an additional 681 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company's stock.

Spire Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:SR opened at $90.81 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 0.61 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.37 billion, a PE ratio of 19.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.60. Spire Inc. has a twelve month low of $69.94 and a twelve month high of $95.31. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $91.41 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $87.48.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The utilities provider reported $1.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.62 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $762.20 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $785.54 million. Spire had a net margin of 10.95% and a return on equity of 9.43%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 13.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.34 earnings per share. Spire has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.650-5.850 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 5.250-5.450 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Spire Inc. will post 5.2 EPS for the current year.

Spire Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, March 11th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 11th. Spire's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.74%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Spire from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Spire from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Spire in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. They set a "hold" rating and a $101.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Spire in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group restated a "buy" rating and set a $99.00 price target on shares of Spire in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Spire has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $93.80.

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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