Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Has $2.16 Million Stake in Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI boosted its stake in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 0.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 28,928 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 201 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in Sempra were worth $2,162,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Sempra during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. PrairieView Partners LLC boosted its position in Sempra by 100.0% during the third quarter. PrairieView Partners LLC now owns 376 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares during the period. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its position in Sempra by 100.0% during the third quarter. Essex Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 390 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the period. Monetary Management Group Inc. boosted its position in Sempra by 100.0% during the third quarter. Monetary Management Group Inc. now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Sempra by 100.0% during the third quarter. Wolverine Asset Management LLC now owns 400 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 57,571 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.59, for a total value of $4,063,936.89. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 10,922 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $770,983.98. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 50,703 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.92, for a total value of $3,595,856.76. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares in the company, valued at $141.84. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Trevor I. Mihalik sold 57,571 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $70.59, for a total value of $4,063,936.89. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 10,922 shares in the company, valued at $770,983.98. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 122,432 shares of company stock valued at $8,668,035. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Sempra Price Performance

NYSE SRE traded down $0.66 during trading on Friday, hitting $71.32. 3,161,506 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,951,422. The company has a current ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $45.08 billion, a PE ratio of 14.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.71. Sempra has a fifty-two week low of $63.75 and a fifty-two week high of $79.30. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $70.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $71.68.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 27th. The utilities provider reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $3.49 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.01 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 9.45% and a net margin of 18.26%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.17 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Sempra will post 4.82 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 21st were paid a dividend of $0.62 per share. This is an increase from Sempra’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 20th. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.48%. Sempra’s payout ratio is presently 51.77%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com cut shares of Sempra from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH assumed coverage on shares of Sempra in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $81.50 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $82.00 price objective on shares of Sempra in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Sempra from $83.00 to $79.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Sempra from $74.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $82.14.

Sempra 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.