Newport Trust Company LLC Has $1.03 Billion Stake in Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• Newport Trust Company reduced its Sempra Energy stake by 4% in the fourth quarter, but still owned 11.7 million shares worth about $1.03 billion, making SRE its 11th-largest holding.
• Analyst sentiment remains generally positive, with Sempra carrying a Moderate Buy rating and a consensus price target of $102.67, despite one recent downgrade to sell. Wells Fargo and UBS both maintained constructive views with price targets of $118 and $100, respectively.
• Sempra reported Q1 EPS of $1.51, matching estimates, though revenue came in below expectations at $3.66 billion. The company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.6575 per share, equal to a 2.9% annual yield.

Newport Trust Company LLC trimmed its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,715,950 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 491,932 shares during the quarter. Sempra Energy accounts for 2.5% of Newport Trust Company LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 11th largest position. Newport Trust Company LLC owned about 1.80% of Sempra Energy worth $1,034,401,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 76,734,070 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,774,907,000 after purchasing an additional 1,008,476 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 9.2% in 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 purchasing an additional 4,572,312 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in Sempra Energy by 1.8% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 34,986,169 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,148,055,000 after acquiring an additional 606,101 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake 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 worth $938,325,000 after acquiring an additional 5,374,277 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 40.1% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 10,419,115 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $937,512,000 after acquiring an additional 2,984,409 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have issued reports on SRE shares. Argus upgraded Sempra Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $100.00 price objective (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Friday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $118.00 price objective on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Sempra Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Sunday, May 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $102.67.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In other Sempra Energy news, Director Jennifer M. Kirk bought 1,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $93.44 per share, for a total transaction of $93,440.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 1,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $93,440. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Dyan Z. Wold sold 1,539 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.38, for a total value of $146,789.82. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 4,633 shares in the company, valued at approximately $441,895.54. This represents a 24.94% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have purchased 6,192 shares of company stock valued at $576,979 and have sold 13,439 shares valued at $1,243,713. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

Shares of SRE stock opened at $91.54 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $94.54 and its 200-day moving average is $91.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 1.66 and a current ratio of 1.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $59.84 billion, a PE ratio of 31.03, a PEG ratio of 3.45 and a beta of 0.60. Sempra Energy has a 52 week low of $73.06 and a 52 week high of $101.04.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.51. The company had revenue of $3.66 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.10 billion. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.20% and a net margin of 14.31%.The business's revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.44 earnings per share. Sempra Energy has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.100-5.700 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.870-5.370 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Sempra Energy will post 5.11 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.6575 per share. This represents a $2.63 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 25th. Sempra Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 89.15%.

Sempra Energy Company 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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