Sempra Energy $SRE Shares Acquired by Korea Investment CORP

Key Points

• Korea Investment CORP increased its position in Sempra Energy by 8.2% to 419,330 shares, worth about $37.7 million (roughly 0.06% of the company).
• Sempra beat quarterly EPS estimates with $1.28 per share while revenue was slightly below expectations, and the company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.6575 (annualized $2.63, ~2.8% yield).
• CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 4,872 shares (an 11.1% reduction in her stake), institutional investors hold about 89.65% of SRE, and analysts' consensus is a "Moderate Buy" with an average target of $100.

Korea Investment CORP increased its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 419,330 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 31,738 shares during the quarter. Korea Investment CORP owned about 0.06% of Sempra Energy worth $37,731,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 52.5% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 18,008 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,285,000 after purchasing an additional 6,196 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP grew its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 40.7% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 53,512 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,819,000 after purchasing an additional 15,474 shares during the period. Ignite Planners LLC increased its position in Sempra Energy by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 12,396 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $970,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Savant Capital LLC increased its position in Sempra Energy by 4.1% during the 2nd quarter. Savant Capital LLC now owns 8,743 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $662,000 after purchasing an additional 344 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Prospera Financial Services Inc raised its holdings in Sempra Energy by 7.7% in the second quarter. Prospera Financial Services Inc now owns 40,883 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,098,000 after buying an additional 2,909 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sempra Energy

In other news, CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 4,872 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.58, for a total transaction of $451,049.76. Following the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 39,029 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,613,304.82. The trade was a 11.10% 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. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Sempra Energy Trading Up 0.9%

SRE opened at $93.49 on Tuesday. The firm's 50 day moving average is $90.37 and its 200-day moving average is $89.36. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $61.90 and a 52-week high of $97.44. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.87, a P/E/G ratio of 3.47 and a beta of 0.73.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.82 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 13.27% and a return on equity of 8.22%. The business's quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 19th will be paid a dividend of $0.6575 per share. This is a boost from Sempra Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.63 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 19th. Sempra Energy's payout ratio is 93.48%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on SRE shares. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $101.00 price objective on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Barclays set a $95.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $100.00 price target (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Friday. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Sempra Energy from $112.00 to $113.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, February 27th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $100.00.

Sempra Energy Company 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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SRE? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.