Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Purchases 648,530 Shares of Sempra Energy $SRE

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs increased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 21.6%, acquiring an additional 648,530 shares, bringing their total ownership to 3,656,805 shares worth approximately $260.95 million.
• Several institutional investors have also significantly increased their stakes in Sempra Energy, with Jones Financial Companies Lllp growing its position by 609.1% during the first quarter.
• Barclays has raised its price target for Sempra Energy shares from $71.00 to $80.00, while the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a price target of $82.33.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 21.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,656,805 shares of the utilities provider's stock after acquiring an additional 648,530 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned about 0.56% of Sempra Energy worth $260,950,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 8.4% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 173,408 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $12,374,000 after purchasing an additional 13,433 shares during the period. Carrera Capital Advisors increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 8.0% in the first quarter. Carrera Capital Advisors now owns 49,570 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,569,000 after purchasing an additional 3,677 shares during the period. Merit Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 7,012 shares during the period. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 53.2% in the first quarter. Inspire Trust Co. N.A. now owns 57,000 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,068,000 after purchasing an additional 19,800 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgewater Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy in the first quarter valued at approximately $483,000. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have commented on SRE. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $71.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 26th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a "neutral" rating and set a $80.00 price objective (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $81.27.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

Sempra Energy stock traded up $0.49 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $83.96. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,204,840 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,332,113. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.28, a P/E/G ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.65. Sempra Energy has a twelve month low of $61.90 and a twelve month high of $95.77. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $80.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $75.61.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.89 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sempra Energy news, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total transaction of $419,399.14. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,380 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,229,553.80. This trade represents a 11.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the senior vice president owned 15,600 shares in the company, valued at $1,248,000. This represents a 9.18% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

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.