Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Shares Bought by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 3.4% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 800,797 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 26,000 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.12% of Sempra Energy worth $57,145,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SRE. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Sempra Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. TCTC Holdings LLC raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 265.2% in the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Opal Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy in the 1st quarter valued at about $38,000. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 0.4%

SRE opened at $74.59 on Monday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $75.91 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $76.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The company has a market cap of $48.62 billion, a PE ratio of 16.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 0.63. Sempra Energy has a 52 week low of $61.90 and a 52 week 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 the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.12. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.55% and a net margin of 22.15%. The company had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.90 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.34 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 26th will be given a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.46%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, June 26th. Sempra Energy's payout ratio is 56.70%.

Insider Transactions at Sempra Energy

In other Sempra Energy news, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total transaction of $595,193.90. Following the transaction, the insider owned 16,969 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,260,117.94. The trade was a 32.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

SRE has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup reduced their target price on Sempra Energy from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $88.00 target price (up from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Sempra Energy from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Sempra Energy from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.75.

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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