Spire (NYSE:SR) Given a $80.00 Price Target by Morgan Stanley Analysts

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) has been given a $80.00 target price by equities research analysts at Morgan Stanley in a research report issued on Wednesday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm currently has an "equal weight" rating on the utilities provider's stock. Morgan Stanley's target price points to a potential upside of 9.86% from the stock's previous close.

A number of other equities research analysts have also commented on the company. Wall Street Zen raised Spire from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH raised Spire to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Spire from $85.00 to $83.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, May 28th. Guggenheim increased their price target on Spire from $67.00 to $72.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Spire from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $77.40.

Spire Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:SR traded up $0.41 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $72.82. 818,157 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 405,568. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 0.43 and a quick ratio of 0.34. Spire has a 1-year low of $58.27 and a 1-year high of $79.81. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $74.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $73.13. The firm has a market cap of $4.30 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.63.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The utilities provider reported $3.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $3.70 by ($0.10). Spire had a return on equity of 8.49% and a net margin of 10.22%. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.15 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $3.45 earnings per share. Spire's revenue for the quarter was down 6.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Spire will post 4.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Spire

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Spire during the 1st quarter worth $1,268,000. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Spire by 2,602.5% during the 1st quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,081 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $85,000 after acquiring an additional 1,041 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Spire by 75.6% during the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 49,923 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $3,906,000 after acquiring an additional 21,495 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Spire during the 1st quarter worth $9,636,000. Finally, Bayforest Capital Ltd grew its stake in shares of Spire by 2,648.0% during the 1st quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd now owns 687 shares of the utilities provider's stock worth $54,000 after acquiring an additional 662 shares during the period. 87.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Spire

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.