Jennison Associates LLC Boosts Stock Position in Sempra Energy $SRE

Jennison Associates LLC increased its stake in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 30.7% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,196,844 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 515,599 shares during the period. Jennison Associates LLC owned approximately 0.34% of Sempra Energy worth $197,672,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 3.8% during the third quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 285,672 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,705,000 after purchasing an additional 10,367 shares during the last quarter. Rakuten Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Sempra Energy during the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,018,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its position in Sempra Energy by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 328,739 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,580,000 after buying an additional 16,319 shares during the period. Grey Fox Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Sempra Energy in the 3rd quarter worth about $54,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Sempra Energy during the third quarter worth approximately $102,000. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

Shares of SRE stock opened at $85.92 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $89.60 and its 200 day moving average is $86.71. Sempra Energy has a 1-year low of $61.90 and a 1-year high of $95.72. 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 company has a market cap of $56.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.36, a PEG ratio of 2.29 and a beta of 0.74.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.11 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.89 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 11th were paid a $0.645 dividend. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, December 11th. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is currently 79.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on SRE. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $112.00 price target (down previously from $115.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Tuesday. Barclays reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $97.00 target price (down from $98.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Thursday. BMO Capital Markets increased their price target on Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. BTIG Research upgraded Sempra Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Sempra Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, November 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seven have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Sempra Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.83.

Insider Transactions at Sempra Energy

In other Sempra Energy news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 4,322 shares of Sempra Energy stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.55, for a total transaction of $400,001.10. Following the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 11,325 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,048,128.75. The trade was a 27.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Dyan Z. Wold sold 1,510 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.38, for a total value of $137,983.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer owned 3,481 shares in the company, valued at $318,093.78. This represents a 30.25% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 19,396 shares of company stock worth $1,785,606. Company insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

About Sempra Energy

Sempra Energy is a San Diego–based energy infrastructure company that develops, owns and operates businesses delivering electricity and natural gas. Its operations include regulated utility services that provide electric and gas distribution to residential, commercial and industrial customers, as well as non?regulated infrastructure businesses that develop and manage large-scale energy assets.

The company’s product and service portfolio spans electricity and natural gas delivery, transmission and storage, liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, power generation and electric transmission projects.