Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Raised to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Sempra Energy from a "sell" to a "hold," joining other firms that have recently raised ratings and price targets; analysts' consensus on MarketBeat is a "Moderate Buy" with a $102.67 average price target.
• Recent quarter: Sempra reported $1.28 EPS versus a $1.12 estimate (beat) but revenue of $3.75B missed the $3.82B estimate; the stock trades around $94.79 with a market cap of $61.9B and a P/E of 34.3.
• Insider activity: CFO Karen Sedgwick sold 4,872 shares while a director bought 2,692 shares, and insiders were net sellers in the last 90 days; institutional investors own roughly 89.7% of the stock.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Wall Street Zen from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other research firms have also recently commented on SRE. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $100.00 price target (up from $96.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Friday, March 6th. Argus raised Sempra Energy from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 4th. Truist Financial set a $108.00 price target on Sempra Energy and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Morgan Stanley set a $104.00 price target on Sempra Energy and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Sempra Energy from $98.00 to $106.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have issued a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Sempra Energy presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $102.67.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 0.3%

Sempra Energy stock opened at $94.79 on Friday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $95.13 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $91.96. The company has a quick ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.75. The stock has a market cap of $61.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.60 and a beta of 0.60. Sempra Energy has a 12 month low of $73.06 and a 12 month high of $101.04.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The utilities provider reported $1.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.12 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $3.75 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.82 billion. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.22% and a net margin of 13.27%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.50 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 5.1 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 4,872 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.58, for a total value of $451,049.76. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 39,029 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,613,304.82. This represents a 11.10% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Richard J. Mark bought 2,692 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $93.30 per share, with a total value of $251,163.60. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director owned 17,376 shares in the company, valued at $1,621,180.80. This represents a 18.33% increase in their position. The SEC filing for this purchase provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders acquired 6,192 shares of company stock worth $576,979 and sold 7,539 shares worth $706,906. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Sempra Energy

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bell Investment Advisors Inc grew its position in Sempra Energy by 79.5% during the 1st quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 262 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Sempra Energy during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Ares Financial Consulting LLC bought a new stake in Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd grew its position in Sempra Energy by 57.7% during the 4th quarter. Clal Insurance Enterprises Holdings Ltd now owns 347 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC grew its position in Sempra Energy by 83.0% during the 4th quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC now owns 355 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 161 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Sempra Energy

Sempra Energy is a San Diego–based energy infrastructure company that develops, owns and operates businesses delivering electricity and natural gas. Its operations include regulated utility services that provide electric and gas distribution to residential, commercial and industrial customers, as well as non‑regulated infrastructure businesses that develop and manage large-scale energy assets.

The company's product and service portfolio spans electricity and natural gas delivery, transmission and storage, liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, power generation and electric transmission projects.

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