Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co Boosts Holdings in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co raised its position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Free Report) by 21.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 20,724 shares of the utilities provider's stock after purchasing an additional 3,601 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co's holdings in Sempra were worth $1,818,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec boosted its position in Sempra by 1,513.4% in the fourth quarter. Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec now owns 85,351 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $7,487,000 after buying an additional 80,061 shares in the last quarter. Soros Fund Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at $6,140,000. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC grew its position in Sempra by 79.8% during the 4th quarter. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 27,114 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $2,378,000 after acquiring an additional 12,030 shares during the last quarter. Lido Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Sempra by 567.2% in the 4th quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 102,290 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $9,036,000 after purchasing an additional 86,958 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Sempra by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 7,181,693 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $629,978,000 after purchasing an additional 538,919 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company's stock.

Sempra Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE SRE traded up $0.82 during trading on Friday, hitting $75.52. 2,830,803 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,740,249. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.52. The business's fifty day moving average is $70.51 and its 200 day moving average is $80.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.65. Sempra has a fifty-two week low of $61.90 and a fifty-two week high of $95.77.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.03. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.13 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 20th were given a $0.645 dividend. This is a boost from Sempra's previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.42%. Sempra's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.37%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on SRE shares. Argus downgraded Sempra from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Guggenheim lowered their target price on Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Sempra from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $80.54.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sempra

In other news, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 4,817 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total value of $343,114.91. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,778 shares in the company, valued at $1,408,786.94. This represents a 19.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Pablo Ferrero purchased 2,600 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 17th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $70.96 per share, for a total transaction of $184,496.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,649 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,110,453.04. This represents a 19.92 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 9,319 shares of company stock worth $651,676. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Sempra 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.