Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Cut to Hold at Argus

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Argus from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday,Finviz reports.

SRE has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $77.00 price target (down previously from $96.00) on shares of Sempra in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Sempra from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Barclays cut shares of Sempra from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $72.00 in a report on Thursday, February 27th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $78.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, UBS Group cut shares of Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $95.00 to $78.00 in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $81.50.

Sempra Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE:SRE opened at $71.03 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $79.31 and its 200-day moving average price is $83.92. Sempra has a 52 week low of $64.89 and a 52 week high of $95.77. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market cap of $46.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.65, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.76.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.03. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.73 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.13 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total transaction of $4,125,186.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 2 shares in the company, valued at $165.88. This trade represents a 100.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Pablo Ferrero acquired 2,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 17th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $70.96 per share, for a total transaction of $184,496.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 15,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,110,453.04. This trade represents a 19.92 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have acquired 9,319 shares of company stock worth $651,676. Company insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sempra

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Crews Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Sempra during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Synergy Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. TCTC Holdings LLC increased its holdings in Sempra by 265.2% in the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 244 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Meeder Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Sempra in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Sempra

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.