MASTERINVEST Kapitalanlage GmbH Invests $833,000 in Sempra Energy $SRE

MASTERINVEST Kapitalanlage GmbH purchased a new stake in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 10,989 shares of the utilities provider’s stock, valued at approximately $833,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 51.2% in the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 375 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Sempra Energy by 245.1% in the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 299 shares during the period. Pingora Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Sempra Energy by 48.3% in the first quarter. Pingora Partners LLC now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the period. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 230.8% in the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 74.1% in the second quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on SRE shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. UBS Group raised their target price on Sempra Energy from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Barclays lowered their price target on Sempra Energy from $101.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $86.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $96.92.

Insider Transactions at Sempra Energy

In other Sempra Energy news, CFO Karen L. Sedgwick sold 7,564 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.29, for a total value of $698,081.56. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 41,280 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,809,731.20. The trade was a 15.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 500 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.70, for a total transaction of $45,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 33,664 shares in the company, valued at $3,086,988.80. This trade represents a 1.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 33,829 shares of company stock worth $3,077,360. 0.27% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:SRE opened at $88.45 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.59 and a quick ratio of 1.56. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $91.87 and its 200-day simple moving average is $84.14. Sempra Energy has a fifty-two week low of $61.90 and a fifty-two week high of $95.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.73 billion, a PE ratio of 27.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.73.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.27. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 15.63% and a return on equity of 8.67%. The company had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.89 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 11th will be paid a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 11th. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.14%.

Sempra Energy Company 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.