Weiss Ratings Reaffirms Buy (B-) Rating for Spire (NYSE:SR)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reaffirmed a "Buy (B-)" rating for Spire (NYSE:SR), indicating confidence in the company's stock performance.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Spire, with price targets ranging from $76.00 to $92.00, contributing to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.00.
• Spire recently reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.01, surpassing analyst estimates and demonstrating a revenue increase of 1.9% year-over-year.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "buy (b-)" rating reaffirmed by research analysts at Weiss Ratings in a research report issued on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

SR has been the topic of a number of other reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Spire from $81.00 to $76.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, September 25th. Bank of America reaffirmed an "underperform" rating and set a $76.00 price objective (down from $81.00) on shares of Spire in a research report on Friday, August 15th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $81.00 target price on shares of Spire and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on Spire in a research note on Monday. They issued a "buy" rating and a $92.00 price target for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating, five have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Spire has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $80.00.

Spire Price Performance

Shares of Spire stock traded up $0.58 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $83.60. 303,972 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 515,111. The company has a market cap of $4.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.69. The company has a current ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 0.27 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.08. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $77.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $75.81. Spire has a fifty-two week low of $61.56 and a fifty-two week high of $83.92.

Spire (NYSE:SR - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The utilities provider reported $0.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.10. Spire had a net margin of 11.56% and a return on equity of 8.66%. The firm had revenue of $421.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $417.27 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.14) EPS. The company's revenue was up 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. Spire has set its FY 2025 guidance at 4.400-4.60 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Spire will post 4.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Spire

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Hantz Financial Services Inc. raised its position in Spire by 1,957.1% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 432 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 411 shares during the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the 2nd quarter valued at $38,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Spire by 1,031.5% during the 2nd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 611 shares of the utilities provider's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 557 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the 2nd quarter valued at $48,000. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Spire during the 1st quarter valued at $50,000. 87.36% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Spire Company Profile

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.

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