Spire Inc. to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.76 (NYSE:SR)

Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 25th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 11th will be paid a dividend of 0.755 per share by the utilities provider on Tuesday, July 2nd. This represents a $3.02 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.92%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 11th.

Spire has raised its dividend by an average of 5.0% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 21 consecutive years. Spire has a dividend payout ratio of 65.9% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Spire to earn $4.56 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.02 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 66.2%.

Spire Trading Down 0.6 %

NYSE:SR traded down $0.35 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $61.40. The stock had a trading volume of 361,004 shares, compared to its average volume of 320,353. Spire has a one year low of $53.77 and a one year high of $69.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.55. The company has a market cap of $3.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.51. The business's 50 day moving average is $60.01 and its 200-day moving average is $59.98.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $756.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $688.88 million. Spire had a net margin of 8.11% and a return on equity of 8.27%. The firm's revenue was down 7.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.55 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Spire will post 4.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on the stock. Mizuho cut their price target on shares of Spire from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH started coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Friday. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $57.50 price target for the company. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They set a "buy" rating and a $68.00 target price for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of Spire in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $61.72.

Insider Transactions at Spire

In related news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,229 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.58, for a total value of $73,223.82. Following the transaction, the treasurer now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $92,944.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,229 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.58, for a total value of $73,223.82. Following the transaction, the treasurer now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $92,944.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Joseph B. Hampton sold 1,294 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.13, for a total transaction of $75,220.22. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,768 shares in the company, valued at $393,423.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.86% of the company's stock.

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.