Spire (NYSE:SR) Price Target Increased to $66.00 by Analysts at Wells Fargo & Company

Spire (NYSE:SR) had its price objective upped by Wells Fargo & Company from $64.00 to $66.00 in a research note released on Thursday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an equal weight rating on the utilities provider’s stock.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on SR. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a sector perform rating and set a $65.00 price target on shares of Spire in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. UBS Group began coverage on Spire in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They issued a buy rating and a $68.00 price target on the stock. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH assumed coverage on Spire in a research report on Friday, April 26th. They set a neutral rating and a $57.50 price objective for the company. Finally, Mizuho lowered Spire from a buy rating to a neutral rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $64.00 to $62.00 in a research note on Thursday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $61.72.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of SR stock opened at $61.31 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.48, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 0.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.43 and a current ratio of 0.61. Spire has a 52 week low of $53.77 and a 52 week high of $69.99. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.22 and a 200 day simple moving average of $60.12.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The utilities provider reported $3.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.86 by ($0.41). The firm had revenue of $1.13 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.21 billion. Spire had a net margin of 9.05% and a return on equity of 7.88%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $3.70 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Spire will post 4.34 earnings per share for the current year.

Spire Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Tuesday, June 11th will be issued a $0.755 dividend. This represents a $3.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.93%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 11th. Spire’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.26%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Joseph B. Hampton sold 1,294 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.13, for a total transaction of $75,220.22. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 6,768 shares in the company, valued at $393,423.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In related news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,229 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $59.58, for a total transaction of $73,223.82. Following the completion of the sale, the treasurer now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $92,944.80. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Joseph B. Hampton sold 1,294 shares of Spire stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.13, for a total value of $75,220.22. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,768 shares in the company, valued at $393,423.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 2.86% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Spire

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Fifth Third Bancorp raised its stake in shares of Spire by 81.9% in the third quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 644 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 290 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Spire in the 1st quarter worth about $37,000. Signaturefd LLC raised its stake in Spire by 34.4% in the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 887 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $55,000 after acquiring an additional 227 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp lifted its holdings in Spire by 30.2% during the fourth quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 1,349 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $84,000 after purchasing an additional 313 shares during the last quarter. Finally, EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its position in Spire by 206.6% during the third quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 1,898 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $107,000 after purchasing an additional 1,279 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

About Spire

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.