Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Given Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Analysts

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) has received an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the thirteen research firms that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $80.75.

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 12th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $88.00 price target (up from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, June 18th. Citigroup cut their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $93.00 to $70.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th.

Sempra Energy Stock Performance

Shares of Sempra Energy stock opened at $75.24 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market cap of $49.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.54, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.63. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $75.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $76.19. Sempra Energy has a fifty-two week low of $61.90 and a fifty-two week high of $95.77.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.90 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 22.15% and a return on equity of 8.55%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.34 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, June 26th were paid a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, June 26th. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. Sempra Energy's dividend payout ratio is presently 56.70%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Diana L. Day sold 8,015 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $74.26, for a total value of $595,193.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 16,969 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,260,117.94. This represents a 32.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Spirepoint Private Client LLC increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Spirepoint Private Client LLC now owns 18,467 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $1,399,000 after acquiring an additional 828 shares in the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 14.1% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 7,922 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $600,000 after acquiring an additional 980 shares in the last quarter. Patton Fund Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Sempra Energy in the 2nd quarter worth about $223,000. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 230.8% in the 2nd quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. Finally, A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 10.5% in the 2nd quarter. A. D. Beadell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 29,150 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,208,000 after acquiring an additional 2,780 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Sempra Energy

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.

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