Sempra Energy $SRE Shares Sold by Northern Trust Corp

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp reduced its stake in Sempra Energy by 0.9%, selling 63,431 shares, and now owns approximately 7,118,262 shares valued at $507,959,000.
• Recent transactions have seen other major investors like NewEdge Advisors LLC and First Trust Advisors LP increase their stakes in Sempra Energy, with institutional investors currently holding 89.65% of the stock.
• Sempra Energy reported $0.89 earnings per share for the last quarter, beating the analysts' estimate of $0.82, although revenue was slightly down compared to the previous year.

Northern Trust Corp reduced its holdings in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 0.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,118,262 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 63,431 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned about 1.09% of Sempra Energy worth $507,959,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of SRE. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $38,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $41,000. Eastern Bank boosted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 73.7% during the 1st quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 580 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $80.00 price target (up from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $88.00 price target (up from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $81.58.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $126,080.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 15,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,248,000. This trade represents a 9.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total value of $419,399.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,229,553.80. The trade was a 11.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sempra Energy Trading Up 2.1%

Shares of SRE traded up $1.6940 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $82.8240. The company had a trading volume of 2,489,237 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,565,545. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $78.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $75.74. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Sempra Energy has a 1-year low of $61.90 and a 1-year high of $95.77. The stock has a market cap of $54.04 billion, a PE ratio of 20.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.62.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.35 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

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.