Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) Price Target Raised to $80.00

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) had its price target lifted by Barclays from $71.00 to $80.00 in a research note published on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on SRE. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $78.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $80.00 target price (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $88.00 target price (up previously from $87.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, June 18th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sempra Energy has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $82.33.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

SRE opened at $81.54 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.69, a P/E/G ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 0.62. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $78.85 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $75.73. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $61.90 and a 52-week high of $95.77.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.35 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.89 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In other Sempra Energy news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 1,576 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.00, for a total transaction of $126,080.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 15,600 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,248,000. This trade represents a 9.18% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total transaction of $419,399.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,229,553.80. The trade was a 11.49% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.27% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sempra Energy

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 51.2% during the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 375 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Sempra Energy during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Pingora Partners LLC raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 48.3% during the 1st quarter. Pingora Partners LLC now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 245.1% during the 2nd quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the period. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its stake in Sempra Energy by 230.8% during the 2nd quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

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.