ProShare Advisors LLC Lowers Holdings in Spire Inc. $SR

Key Points

• ProShare Advisors LLC reduced its Spire stake by 15.5% in the fourth quarter, selling 85,282 shares and ending with 465,692 shares worth about $38.5 million.
• Spire reported stronger-than-expected earnings for the latest quarter, posting EPS of $3.76 versus the $3.72 consensus, though revenue of $1.02 billion came in below estimates.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.825 per share, or $3.30 annually, implying a yield of about 3.8% and a payout ratio of 58%.

ProShare Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) by 15.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 465,692 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 85,282 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC owned 0.79% of Spire worth $38,513,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its holdings in shares of Spire by 10.0% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 212,438 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $16,623,000 after acquiring an additional 19,373 shares in the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the 1st quarter worth approximately $9,636,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its holdings in shares of Spire by 1,031.5% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 611 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 557 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp raised its holdings in shares of Spire by 75.8% during the 2nd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 4,658 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $340,000 after acquiring an additional 2,009 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Spire by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 585,919 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $42,766,000 after acquiring an additional 8,726 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Paul D. Koonce purchased 2,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $85.81 per share, with a total value of $171,620.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 7,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $600,670. This represents a 40.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 2.26% of the company's stock.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of Spire stock opened at $87.02 on Wednesday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $90.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $87.52. The company has a market capitalization of $5.14 billion, a PE ratio of 15.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.42 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. Spire Inc. has a 52 week low of $71.24 and a 52 week high of $95.31.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $3.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $3.72 by $0.04. Spire had a return on equity of 9.49% and a net margin of 13.97%.The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.07 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $3.60 EPS. The business's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Spire Inc. will post 5.18 earnings per share for the current year.

Spire Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 11th will be given a dividend of $0.825 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 11th. This represents a $3.30 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.8%. Spire's dividend payout ratio is presently 58.00%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SR has been the topic of several recent research reports. Weiss Ratings raised Spire from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. UBS Group decreased their price target on Spire from $106.00 to $103.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 8th. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on Spire from $81.00 to $87.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $102.00 price target on shares of Spire in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on Spire in a report on Monday, May 11th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $96.00 price target on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Spire has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $95.50.

Spire Company 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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