RNC Capital Management LLC Boosts Stock Position in Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• RNC Capital Management LLC enhanced its stake in Sempra Energy by 14.7% in Q1, now holding 593,580 shares valued at approximately $42.36 million.
• Sempra Energy's stock has seen multiple ratings upgrades from brokerages, with Citigroup setting a new price target of $80.00 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".
• Insider activities included EVP Caroline Ann Winn selling 5,114 shares at an average price of $82.01, a notable decrease in their position.

RNC Capital Management LLC raised its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 14.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 593,580 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 76,193 shares during the period. Sempra Energy comprises about 2.2% of RNC Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. RNC Capital Management LLC owned about 0.09% of Sempra Energy worth $42,358,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Sempra Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Pingora Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Sempra Energy by 48.3% in the 1st quarter. Pingora Partners LLC now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Sempra Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Sempra Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $41,000. Finally, Eastern Bank lifted its holdings in Sempra Energy by 73.7% in the 1st quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 580 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In related news, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total transaction of $419,399.14. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 39,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,229,553.80. The trade was a 11.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, 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 owned 15,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,248,000. This trade represents a 9.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on SRE. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $80.00 price target (up from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, August 4th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Barclays raised their price target on Sempra Energy from $71.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Thursday, August 21st. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $82.33.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE SRE opened at $81.06 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $79.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $75.52. The company has a market cap of $52.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.58 and a beta of 0.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. Sempra Energy has a 12-month low of $61.90 and a 12-month high of $95.77.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.42% and a net margin of 20.28%.Sempra Energy's revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.89 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal 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.

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