Natixis Advisors LLC Lowers Holdings in Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• Natixis Advisors LLC cut its Sempra Energy stake by 29.6% in Q3, selling 208,160 shares and leaving 495,504 shares worth about $44.6 million (≈0.08% of the company).
• Sempra's CFO, Karen L. Sedgwick, sold 4,872 shares on March 9 at an average price of $92.58, reducing her holding by 11.1% to 39,029 shares.
• Sempra reported quarterly EPS of $1.28 (above the $1.12 estimate) with revenue of $3.75 billion (slightly below estimates) and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.6575 ($2.63 annual, ~2.8% yield; payout ratio ~93.5%).

Natixis Advisors LLC trimmed its stake in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 29.6% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 495,504 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 208,160 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC owned 0.08% of Sempra Energy worth $44,585,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SRE. West Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 1.1% during the third quarter. West Wealth Group LLC now owns 10,207 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $942,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares in the last quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Town & Country Bank & Trust CO dba First Bankers Trust CO now owns 6,911 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $622,000 after purchasing an additional 113 shares in the last quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Sempra Energy by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,587 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $773,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Advisor OS LLC grew its position in Sempra Energy by 1.2% during the 3rd quarter. Advisor OS LLC now owns 9,681 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $871,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Sempra Energy by 24.4% during the 2nd quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 642 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 4,872 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.58, for a total value of $451,049.76. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 39,029 shares in the company, valued at $3,613,304.82. This trade represents a 11.10% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sempra Energy Stock Up 0.9%

SRE opened at $93.49 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $90.37 and a 200-day moving average price of $89.36. Sempra Energy has a twelve month low of $61.90 and a twelve month high of $97.44. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.87, a PEG ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.73.

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

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.6575 per share. This represents a $2.63 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 19th. This is a positive change from Sempra Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. Sempra Energy's payout ratio is currently 93.48%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on SRE shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Sempra Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Saturday. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $99.00 price target (up from $80.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Monday, November 24th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $101.00 price objective on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Friday, February 20th. Finally, Barclays set a $95.00 price objective on Sempra Energy and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $100.00.

Sempra Energy Profile

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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