Interval Partners LP Takes Position in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Interval Partners LP acquired a new stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 39,449 shares of the utilities provider's stock, valued at approximately $3,460,000.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Crews Bank & Trust acquired a new position in Sempra in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Sempra in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 265.2% during the fourth quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Cynthia J. Warner purchased 700 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $70.65 per share, with a total value of $49,455.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,759 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $618,823.35. This represents a 8.69% increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total value of $595,193.90. Following the sale, the insider now owns 16,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,260,117.94. This trade represents a 32.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders acquired 9,319 shares of company stock worth $651,676. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

SRE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Argus cut Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. UBS Group lowered shares of Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and cut their price target for the company from $95.00 to $78.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their price objective on shares of Sempra from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Sempra from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $80.77.

Sempra Stock Up 2.1%

SRE stock traded up $1.60 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $76.46. The stock had a trading volume of 2,895,745 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,734,552. Sempra has a 1-year low of $61.90 and a 1-year high of $95.77. The company has a fifty day moving average of $71.20 and a 200 day moving average of $80.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $49.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.84, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.63.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.90 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm's revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.34 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, June 26th will be paid a $0.645 dividend. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. Sempra's payout ratio is presently 56.70%.

Sempra Company 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.