Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Shares Sold by Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd.

Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. trimmed its position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,942,788 shares of the utilities provider's stock after selling 28,303 shares during the quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. owned 0.31% of Sempra worth $145,185,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WFA of San Diego LLC boosted its holdings in Sempra by 29.9% during the 3rd quarter. WFA of San Diego LLC now owns 2,439 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $166,000 after acquiring an additional 561 shares during the period. Meyer Handelman Co. boosted its holdings in Sempra by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Meyer Handelman Co. now owns 68,696 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $4,673,000 after acquiring an additional 34,348 shares during the period. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC boosted its holdings in Sempra by 93.7% during the 3rd quarter. Northwest Investment Counselors LLC now owns 2,195 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $149,000 after acquiring an additional 1,062 shares during the period. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board boosted its holdings in Sempra by 114.4% during the 3rd quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 32,782 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $2,230,000 after acquiring an additional 17,491 shares during the period. Finally, Ausbil Investment Management Ltd boosted its holdings in Sempra by 13.5% during the 4th quarter. Ausbil Investment Management Ltd now owns 172,129 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $12,863,000 after acquiring an additional 20,469 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Stock Performance

SRE traded down $0.32 during trading on Friday, hitting $70.52. 2,795,050 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,986,465. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.72, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.71. Sempra has a 1-year low of $63.75 and a 1-year high of $79.51. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $70.72 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $71.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $3.49 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.01 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 18.26%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.17 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 21st will be issued a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. This is a positive change from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. Sempra's payout ratio is presently 51.77%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on SRE shares. StockNews.com cut Sempra from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Sempra from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $78.00 to $86.00 in a research note on Tuesday, December 12th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Sempra from $77.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 14th. BMO Capital Markets upgraded Sempra from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $76.00 to $84.00 in a research note on Thursday, January 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Sempra from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $82.14.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 5,063 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.22, for a total transaction of $360,586.86. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 19,712 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,403,888.64. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 57,571 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.59, for a total transaction of $4,063,936.89. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,922 shares of the company's stock, valued at $770,983.98. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 5,063 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.22, for a total value of $360,586.86. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,712 shares in the company, valued at $1,403,888.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 156,622 shares of company stock valued at $11,089,713. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

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.