Janus Henderson Group PLC Buys 1,936,865 Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 71.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,651,923 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,936,865 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Sempra were worth $408,069,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new position in Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Sempra in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Sempra in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC increased its holdings in shares of Sempra by 265.2% in the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 244 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Justin Christopher Bird sold 4,817 shares of Sempra stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.23, for a total transaction of $343,114.91. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 19,778 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,408,786.94. This trade represents a 19.59% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director James C. Yardley purchased 5,019 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $69.74 per share, for a total transaction of $350,025.06. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 5,019 shares in the company, valued at $350,025.06. This represents a ? increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 9,319 shares of company stock worth $651,676 over the last three months. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sempra Stock Down 0.5%

Sempra stock opened at $75.40 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $49.15 billion, a PE ratio of 16.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.52. Sempra has a one year low of $61.90 and a one year high of $95.77. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $70.90 and a 200 day moving average of $80.47.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 8th. The utilities provider reported $1.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.32 by $0.12. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.90 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.34 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 20th were issued a dividend of $0.645 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 20th. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.42%. This is an increase from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.62. Sempra’s payout ratio is currently 56.70%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on the company. Argus lowered Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 18th. UBS Group lowered Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $78.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Mizuho reduced their target price on Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Sempra from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Sempra from $77.00 to $75.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 15th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.54.

About Sempra

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.