Zimmer Partners LP Decreases Stock Position in Spire Inc. $SR

Key Points

• Zimmer Partners LP reduced its holdings in Spire Inc. by 1.1%, now owning 438,598 shares worth approximately $34.32 million.
• Spire recently reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.01, surpassing analysts' expectations of ($0.09), with a revenue of $421.90 million for the quarter.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.785, representing a 4.2% dividend yield, with the ex-dividend date set for September 11th.

Zimmer Partners LP lessened its position in Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Free Report) by 1.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 438,598 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 4,902 shares during the period. Zimmer Partners LP owned 0.74% of Spire worth $34,320,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of SR. Dean Capital Management increased its stake in shares of Spire by 57.4% in the first quarter. Dean Capital Management now owns 39,118 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $3,061,000 after buying an additional 14,270 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association acquired a new stake in shares of Spire in the first quarter valued at about $289,000. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its stake in shares of Spire by 7.7% in the first quarter. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. now owns 105,569 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $8,261,000 after buying an additional 7,543 shares during the period. Sciencast Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Spire during the 1st quarter valued at about $706,000. Finally, Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Spire during the 1st quarter valued at about $156,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company's stock.

Spire Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of SR stock traded down $0.13 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $76.10. The company had a trading volume of 523,639 shares, compared to its average volume of 396,559. Spire Inc. has a 12 month low of $61.56 and a 12 month high of $79.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08, a current ratio of 0.37 and a quick ratio of 0.27. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $75.74 and a 200-day simple moving average of $75.42. The company has a market cap of $4.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 0.70.

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

Spire Dividend Announcement

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 issued a dividend of $0.785 per share. This represents a $3.14 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, September 11th. Spire's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 67.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on SR. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Spire from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Bank of America restated an "underperform" rating and set a $76.00 target price (down previously from $81.00) on shares of Spire in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Morgan Stanley restated an "underperform" rating on shares of Spire in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $81.00 target price on Spire and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $79.20.

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.