Sempra Energy $SRE Shares Purchased by ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.

Key Points

• ZWJ Investment Counsel raised its stake in Sempra by 5.1% to 321,145 shares (worth about $28.35M), and institutional investors now own roughly 89.65% of the stock.
• Analyst sentiment is positive overall with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a $101.64 consensus price target, while firms like JPMorgan and Barclays have recently issued overweight/upgraded views.
• Sempra beat quarterly EPS estimates ($1.28 vs. $1.12) despite slightly lower revenue, and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.6575 (annualized $2.63, ~2.7% yield) with a payout ratio near 95%.

ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 321,145 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 15,676 shares during the quarter. ZWJ Investment Counsel Inc.'s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $28,354,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of SRE. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in Sempra Energy by 52.5% during the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 18,008 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,285,000 after acquiring an additional 6,196 shares during the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP raised its position in Sempra Energy by 40.7% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 53,512 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,819,000 after acquiring an additional 15,474 shares during the last quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. raised its position in Sempra Energy by 6.2% during the second quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. now owns 14,699 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,114,000 after acquiring an additional 858 shares during the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC raised its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 78.5% during the 2nd quarter. Cary Street Partners Financial LLC now owns 771 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $58,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sei Investments Co. raised its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 80.0% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 423,280 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $32,072,000 after purchasing an additional 188,131 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Sempra Energy from $98.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 18th. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Wall Street Zen cut Sempra Energy from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Sunday, March 29th. Barclays reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $105.00 price target on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $100.00 target price (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Friday, March 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $101.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 1,128 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $96.69, for a total value of $109,066.32. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 21,632 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,091,598.08. This trade represents a 4.96% 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 the SEC website. Also, Director Cynthia J. Warner bought 2,500 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $92.95 per share, for a total transaction of $232,375.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 11,275 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,048,011.25. The trade was a 28.49% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have acquired 6,192 shares of company stock worth $576,979 and have sold 7,539 shares worth $706,906. Company insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Sempra Energy stock opened at $96.15 on Wednesday. Sempra Energy has a fifty-two week low of $69.08 and a fifty-two week high of $101.04. The firm has a market cap of $62.82 billion, a PE ratio of 34.84, a P/E/G ratio of 3.64 and a beta of 0.67. The business's fifty day moving average is $94.43 and its two-hundred day moving average is $91.76. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75.

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

Sempra Energy Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 19th will be issued a $0.6575 dividend. This is a boost from Sempra Energy's previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, March 19th. This represents a $2.63 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Sempra Energy's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 95.29%.

Sempra Energy 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.

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