MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. Acquires 229,045 Shares of Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its stake in Sempra Energy by 7.0%, holding 3,495,527 shares worth $249,435,000 as of the end of the first quarter.
• Sempra Energy recently reported a quarterly EPS of $0.89, surpassing analyst expectations of $0.82, although its revenue of $3 billion fell short of the $3.35 billion estimate.
• Analysts have a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" for Sempra Energy, with an average price target of $82.33, following recent price target adjustments from several firms.

MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. lifted its stake in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 7.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,495,527 shares of the utilities provider's stock after buying an additional 229,045 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. owned about 0.54% of Sempra Energy worth $249,435,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Sempra Energy during the 1st quarter valued at $38,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $41,000. Eastern Bank increased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 73.7% during the 1st quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 580 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 246 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cary Street Partners Financial LLC acquired a new stake in Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter valued at $56,000. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sempra Energy

In other news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total value of $126,080.00. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 15,600 shares in the company, valued at $1,248,000. This trade represents a 9.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total value of $419,399.14. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 39,380 shares in the company, valued at $3,229,553.80. This represents a 11.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Sempra Energy Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NYSE SRE traded up $1.25 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $81.57. The stock had a trading volume of 1,688,171 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,446,267. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $79.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $75.50. The firm has a market cap of $53.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.65. Sempra Energy has a fifty-two week low of $61.90 and a fifty-two week high of $95.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.07. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.42% and a net margin of 20.28%.The company had revenue of $3 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.35 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was down .4% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Thursday, August 21st. Barclays raised their price target on Sempra Energy from $71.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 price target (up from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Monday, August 4th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Sempra Energy has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $82.33.

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.