Raiffeisen Bank International AG Cuts Position in Sempra Energy $SRE

Raiffeisen Bank International AG lessened its position in Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 12.1% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 10,876 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,502 shares during the period. Raiffeisen Bank International AG’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $816,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. boosted its stake in Sempra Energy by 4.7% in the second quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 329,865 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $25,080,000 after buying an additional 14,932 shares in the last quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI raised its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 2.6% during the second quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI now owns 31,336 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $2,374,000 after acquiring an additional 807 shares in the last quarter. Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Woodley Farra Manion Portfolio Management Inc. now owns 407,311 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $31,123,000 after acquiring an additional 12,362 shares during the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV boosted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 3.8% in the 2nd quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 5,682 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $431,000 after purchasing an additional 209 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its stake in shares of Sempra Energy by 11.2% in the 2nd quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 195,253 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $14,794,000 after purchasing an additional 19,744 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Energy Stock Down 0.7%

SRE stock opened at $91.59 on Wednesday. Sempra Energy has a fifty-two week low of $61.90 and a fifty-two week high of $95.77. The company has a market capitalization of $59.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.68. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $89.96 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $82.30. 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 earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.11 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.84 by $0.27. The firm had revenue of $3.15 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The company’s revenue was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, December 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.645 per share. 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 79.14%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

SRE has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Sempra Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. BTIG Research raised Sempra Energy to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Evercore ISI set a $105.00 price target on Sempra Energy and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on Sempra Energy from $101.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have issued a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.42.

Insider Buying and Selling at Sempra Energy

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 4,322 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $92.55, for a total value of $400,001.10. Following the transaction, the senior vice president owned 11,325 shares in the company, valued at $1,048,128.75. The trade was a 27.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Kevin C. Sagara sold 14,433 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total transaction of $1,291,753.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,042 shares in the company, valued at $93,259. This trade represents a 93.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold 47,619 shares of company stock worth $4,122,392 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

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.