Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Position Increased by Principal Financial Group Inc.

Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 4.6% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,677,718 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 73,932 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.26% of Sempra Energy worth $119,722,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Sempra Energy by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 63,018,055 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $5,527,944,000 after buying an additional 490,269 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 11.9% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 38,407,154 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,369,076,000 after acquiring an additional 4,082,261 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its position in Sempra Energy by 8.0% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 20,489,918 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,797,376,000 after purchasing an additional 1,511,313 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Sempra Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,535,000,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 2.4% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 13,072,966 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,143,248,000 after purchasing an additional 311,094 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Stock Up 1.0%

SRE opened at $75.55 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a current ratio of 0.57. The company has a market capitalization of $49.25 billion, a PE ratio of 16.60, a P/E/G ratio of 2.02 and a beta of 0.63. The stock's fifty day moving average is $75.97 and its 200-day moving average is $76.87. Sempra Energy has a one year low of $61.90 and a one year high of $95.77.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.12. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.55% and a net margin of 22.15%. The firm had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.34 earnings per share. Sempra Energy's revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 26th will be issued a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 26th. Sempra Energy's payout ratio is 56.70%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SRE has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $88.00 price objective (up from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Citigroup cut their target price on Sempra Energy from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Argus lowered Sempra Energy from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sempra Energy news, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total value of $595,193.90. Following the transaction, the insider owned 16,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,260,117.94. This represents a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Sempra Energy Company 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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