Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Shares Down 3.6% on Analyst Downgrade

Key Points

• Sempra Energy shares fell 3.6% to about $84.27 after Morgan Stanley cut its price target from $108 to $104, while maintaining an overweight rating.
• Analyst sentiment remains broadly positive: Sempra has a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $103.62, despite the downgrade.
• The company recently exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.16 in EPS versus the $1.01 consensus estimate, although revenue of $3 billion was below forecasts.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded down 3.6% on Friday after Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on the stock from $108.00 to $104.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an overweight rating on the stock. Sempra Energy traded as low as $84.08 and last traded at $84.27. Approximately 1,274,652 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 3,736,013 shares. The stock had previously closed at $87.38.

SRE has been the subject of a number of other reports. Jefferies Financial Group set a $101.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Truist Financial set a $100.00 target price on Sempra Energy and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Sempra Energy from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, July 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $103.62.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Sempra Energy news, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 8,000 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, June 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.55, for a total value of $724,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 25,164 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,278,600.20. The trade was a 24.12% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Sempra Energy

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Carnegie Investment Counsel grew its position in Sempra Energy by 15.5% in the first quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 167,391 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $16,265,000 after acquiring an additional 22,408 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 1,590,698 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $142,702,000 after purchasing an additional 74,749 shares during the period. Dockside LLC acquired a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the fourth quarter worth $3,938,000. Magellan Asset Management Ltd lifted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 4.2% during the first quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd now owns 2,258,369 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $219,446,000 after purchasing an additional 91,519 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new position in shares of Sempra Energy in the fourth quarter valued at $3,289,000. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 4.1%

The firm's 50 day moving average price is $90.50 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $92.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.79 billion, a PE ratio of 24.29, a P/E/G ratio of 2.06 and a beta of 0.57. The company has a quick ratio of 1.62, a current ratio of 1.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.78.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.01 by $0.15. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 16.70% and a return on equity of 8.49%. The firm had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.14 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.89 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. Sempra Energy has set its FY 2027 guidance at 5.100-5.700 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 4.800-5.300 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 5.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Company Profile

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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