Voya Investment Management LLC Sells 9,179 Shares of Spire Inc. $SR

Key Points

• Voya Investment Management LLC has reduced its stake in Spire Inc. by 21.3%, now holding 33,910 shares valued at approximately $2.65 million.
• Spire reported a quarterly EPS of $0.01, surpassing analysts' expectations, with a revenue of $421.9 million reflecting a 1.9% increase from the previous year.
• The company recently declared a dividend of $0.785 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 4.1% with an ex-dividend date of September 11th.

Voya Investment Management LLC lessened its stake in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) by 21.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 33,910 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 9,179 shares during the quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Spire worth $2,653,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Golden State Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Spire by 103.8% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 803 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $63,000 after acquiring an additional 409 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Spire by 2.6% during the 1st quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 177,950 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $13,925,000 after acquiring an additional 4,576 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Spire by 16.9% in the first quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 5,833 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $456,000 after buying an additional 844 shares in the last quarter. Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in Spire in the first quarter valued at approximately $216,000. Finally, KBC Group NV lifted its stake in Spire by 27.4% in the first quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,938 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $230,000 after buying an additional 631 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company's stock.

Spire Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE:SR traded up $1.02 on Tuesday, reaching $77.93. 135,602 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 455,684. The firm has a market capitalization of $4.60 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.70. The company's 50 day moving average is $75.95 and its 200-day moving average is $75.38. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. Spire Inc. has a 1-year low of $61.56 and a 1-year high of $79.81.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.09) by $0.10. The company had revenue of $421.90 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $417.27 million. Spire had a net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 8.66%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted ($0.14) EPS. Spire has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.400-4.60 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Spire Inc. will post 4.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Spire Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, September 11th will be given a $0.785 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 11th. This represents a $3.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. Spire's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 67.82%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SR has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus set a $81.00 price objective on shares of Spire and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Spire from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Morgan Stanley restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Spire in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated an "underperform" rating and issued a $76.00 price objective (down from $81.00) on shares of Spire in a report on Friday, August 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, four have issued a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $79.20.

About Spire

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.