Russell Investments Group Ltd. Buys 140,715 Shares of Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its Sempra Energy stake by 7.8% in the fourth quarter, buying 140,715 shares and bringing its total holdings to 1,936,038 shares valued at about $170.96 million.
• Sempra reported quarterly EPS of $1.51, matching analyst estimates, but revenue of $3.66 billion came in below expectations of $4.10 billion and was down 3.9% year over year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.6575 per share, equal to $2.63 annually and a 2.9% yield, while analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with an average price target of $102.67.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 7.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,936,038 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 140,715 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned about 0.30% of Sempra Energy worth $170,961,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Sempra Energy during the fourth quarter valued at about $914,924,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 14.2% in the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 75,725,594 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $6,813,784,000 after buying an additional 9,396,652 shares during the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 106.3% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 10,428,007 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $938,325,000 after buying an additional 5,374,277 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its stake in 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 buying an additional 4,572,312 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 17.0% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 22,330,091 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,971,524,000 after buying an additional 3,250,783 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $91.75 on Wednesday. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $73.06 and a 52-week high of $101.04. The stock has a market cap of $59.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.10, a PEG ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.56. The company has a quick ratio of 1.66, a current ratio of 1.69 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $92.83 and a 200-day moving average price of $91.74.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The utilities provider reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.51. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.20% and a net margin of 14.31%.The firm had revenue of $3.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.10 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.44 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 3.9% compared to the same quarter last year. 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 analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 5.11 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 25th will be paid a $0.6575 dividend. 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 (DPR) is presently 89.15%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on SRE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Sempra Energy from $98.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 18th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Sempra Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday. Truist Financial set a $104.00 price target on Sempra Energy and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Argus upgraded Sempra Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Sempra Energy currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $102.67.

Insider Transactions at Sempra Energy

In related news, Director Pablo Ferrero sold 2,600 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $89.53, for a total transaction of $232,778.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 15,423 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,380,821.19. This trade represents a 14.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Diana L. Day sold 3,300 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.13, for a total value of $304,029.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 22,870 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,107,013.10. This represents a 12.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders sold a total of 7,028 shares of company stock worth $645,873 over the last three months. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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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