Magellan Asset Management Ltd Sells 287,401 Shares of Sempra Energy $SRE

Magellan Asset Management Ltd trimmed its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 11.3% in the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 2,257,996 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 287,401 shares during the quarter. Sempra Energy accounts for about 2.0% of Magellan Asset Management Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Magellan Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $171,088,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of SRE. Jacobi Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Sempra Energy by 10.3% in the 1st quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 5,641 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $403,000 after purchasing an additional 526 shares during the period. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 21.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 3,656,805 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $260,950,000 after buying an additional 648,530 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its position in Sempra Energy by 7.0% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 3,495,527 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $249,435,000 after acquiring an additional 229,045 shares during the period. Energy Income Partners LLC lifted its stake in Sempra Energy by 2.5% in the first quarter. Energy Income Partners LLC now owns 2,182,448 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $155,739,000 after purchasing an additional 52,838 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Panagora Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Sempra Energy by 46.0% in the 1st quarter. Panagora Asset Management Inc. now owns 37,501 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,676,000 after acquiring an additional 11,811 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Energy Price Performance

Shares of SRE opened at $93.63 on Friday. Sempra Energy has a fifty-two week low of $61.90 and a fifty-two week high of $95.77. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $88.43 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $81.32. The stock has a market cap of $61.09 billion, a PE ratio of 22.62, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.68. 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 issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.27. Sempra Energy had a return on equity of 8.42% and a net margin of 20.28%.The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.99 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.89 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, December 11th will be paid a $0.645 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, December 11th. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Sempra Energy’s payout ratio is presently 62.32%.

Insider Activity at Sempra Energy

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 4,322 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.55, for a total transaction of $400,001.10. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 11,325 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,048,128.75. This represents a 27.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of Sempra Energy 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 transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 39,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,229,553.80. This trade represents a 11.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 52,733 shares of company stock valued at $4,541,791. 0.27% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SRE has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $99.00 price objective on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. UBS Group upped their target price on Sempra Energy from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday. Barclays dropped their price objective on Sempra Energy from $101.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sempra Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.42.

Sempra Energy 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.