Wedbush Securities Inc. Lowers Holdings in Sempra Energy $SRE

Wedbush Securities Inc. decreased its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 32.5% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 11,759 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 5,661 shares during the quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $891,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of SRE. Westside Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Sempra Energy by 51.2% in the second quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 375 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Pingora Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 48.3% during the first quarter. Pingora Partners LLC now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC raised its holdings in Sempra Energy by 245.1% in 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 last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Sempra Energy by 230.8% in 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 last quarter. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC lifted its position in Sempra Energy by 74.1% in the 2nd quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 0.9%

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $92.91 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $88.64 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $81.57. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.44, a PEG ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.68. Sempra Energy has a 52-week low of $61.90 and a 52-week high of $95.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a quick ratio of 0.41 and a current ratio of 0.48.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.27. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 11th will be issued a $0.645 dividend. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 11th. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on SRE. Jefferies Financial Group set a $89.00 target price on Sempra Energy and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Barclays reduced their price objective on Sempra Energy from $101.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 6th. 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. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets boosted their price objective on shares of Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Sempra Energy presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.42.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In other Sempra Energy news, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total transaction of $419,399.14. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,229,553.80. The trade was a 11.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 4,322 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.55, for a total value of $400,001.10. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president owned 11,325 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,048,128.75. The trade was a 27.62% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 52,733 shares of company stock worth $4,541,791. Corporate insiders own 0.27% 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.