Tredje AP fonden Sells 89,587 Shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE)

Key Points

• Tredje AP fonden significantly cut its stake in Sempra Energy by 48.6%, selling 89,587 shares, leaving it with 94,846 shares valued at approximately $6.77 million.
• Sempra Energy reported earnings per share of $1.44 for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations, although its revenue fell short of projections at $3.80 billion.
• The company's quarterly dividend was declared at $0.645, providing a yield of 3.17% and a payout ratio of 56.70%.

Tredje AP fonden cut its stake in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 48.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 94,846 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 89,587 shares during the quarter. Tredje AP fonden's holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $6,768,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 8.4% in the 1st quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 173,408 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $12,374,000 after acquiring an additional 13,433 shares during the last quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 171.2% in the 1st quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 11,107 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $793,000 after acquiring an additional 7,012 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy in the 1st quarter worth approximately $1,099,000. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 81.0% in the 1st quarter. Lee Danner & Bass Inc. now owns 46,277 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,302,000 after acquiring an additional 20,707 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 1,283.7% in the 1st quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 265,485 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $18,945,000 after acquiring an additional 246,299 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the business'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 sale, the senior vice president owned 15,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,248,000. The trade was a 9.18% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total transaction of $595,193.90. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 16,969 shares in the company, valued at $1,260,117.94. This trade represents a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on SRE. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 15th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $72.00 to $71.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $88.00 target price (up from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $80.75.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 0.9%

Sempra Energy stock traded down $0.71 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $80.97. 2,661,712 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,051,971. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $76.67 and its 200 day moving average price is $75.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.80, a P/E/G ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.62. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $61.90 and a 52-week high of $95.77.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.12. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 22.15% and a return on equity of 8.55%. The business had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.90 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.34 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 26th were issued a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 26th. Sempra Energy's payout ratio is 56.70%.

Sempra Energy 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.