Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Makes New Investment in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH has acquired 36,794 shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE: SR) in the first quarter, now holding approximately 0.06% of the company valued at about $2.88 million.
• Spire's shares experienced a **1.7% increase**, reaching $74.07, with a market cap of $4.37 billion and a P/E ratio of 18.24.
• Recent earnings showed Spire missed analysts' estimates, reporting earnings per share of **$3.60**, below the consensus estimate of $3.70, with quarterly revenue down 6.8% year-over-year.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 36,794 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,879,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned about 0.06% of Spire at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of SR. LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Spire by 10.4% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 16,715 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $1,134,000 after buying an additional 1,573 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Spire by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 6,168,221 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $418,390,000 after purchasing an additional 46,434 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its stake in Spire by 48.0% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 428,701 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $29,079,000 after purchasing an additional 138,971 shares during the period. Blair William & Co. IL raised its stake in Spire by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 6,027 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $409,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Spire during the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,432,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on SR. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised shares of Spire to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Spire from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Spire from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Spire from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Spire in a report on Wednesday, June 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $78.60.

Spire Stock Down 0.3%

Spire stock traded down $0.20 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $74.27. 749,459 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 454,265. Spire Inc. has a 1 year low of $61.56 and a 1 year high of $79.81. The firm has a market cap of $4.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.34. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $74.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $74.51.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $3.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.70 by ($0.10). Spire had a return on equity of 8.49% and a net margin of 10.22%. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.15 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $3.45 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was down 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Spire Inc. will post 4.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Spire Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Thursday, September 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.785 per share. This represents a $3.14 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, September 11th. Spire's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.34%.

Spire Company Profile

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.