Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Shares Sold by Magellan Asset Management Ltd

Key Points

• Magellan Asset Management Ltd decreased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 4.3%, owning approximately 2.2% of the company after selling 114,694 shares.
• Analysts have mixed ratings for Sempra Energy, with a consensus average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $81.58.
• Sempra Energy recently reported an EPS of $0.89 for the quarter, surpassing expectations, while also declaring a quarterly dividend of $0.645 per share.

Magellan Asset Management Ltd decreased its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 4.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,545,397 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 114,694 shares during the period. Sempra Energy makes up approximately 2.2% of Magellan Asset Management Ltd's holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. Magellan Asset Management Ltd owned approximately 0.39% of Sempra Energy worth $181,640,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC raised its holdings in Sempra Energy by 8.4% during the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 173,408 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $12,374,000 after purchasing an additional 13,433 shares in the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 171.2% in the first quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 11,107 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $793,000 after buying an additional 7,012 shares in the last quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. increased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 81.0% in the first quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. now owns 46,277 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,302,000 after buying an additional 20,707 shares in the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Sempra Energy in the first quarter valued at about $1,099,000. Finally, Bridgewater Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the 1st quarter worth approximately $483,000. 89.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on SRE shares. Citigroup reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 price objective (up from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, August 4th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $88.00 target price (up previously from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Sempra Energy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $81.58.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sempra Energy

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $126,080.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 15,600 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,248,000. The trade was a 9.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider directly owned 16,969 shares in the company, valued at $1,260,117.94. This trade represents a 32.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 1.0%

Shares of SRE opened at $81.74 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $53.29 billion, a PE ratio of 19.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.62. The company's fifty day moving average is $77.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.73. Sempra Energy has a fifty-two week low of $61.90 and a fifty-two week high of $95.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.07. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.37%. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.35 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.89 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 26th were paid a dividend of $0.645 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 26th. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.2%. Sempra Energy's payout ratio is 56.70%.

About Sempra Energy

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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