Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Holdings in Sempra Energy $SRE

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 7.5% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 234,324 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after buying an additional 16,370 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $17,755,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SRE. Westside Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Sempra Energy by 51.2% during the 2nd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 375 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Pingora Partners LLC lifted its position in 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 purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its position in Sempra Energy by 245.1% during the second quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 421 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its holdings in Sempra Energy by 230.8% during the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. Finally, Bogart Wealth LLC increased its position in Sempra Energy by 74.1% in the second quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC now owns 444 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Energy Trading Down 0.7%

Shares of SRE opened at $91.59 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41. Sempra Energy has a 1 year low of $61.90 and a 1 year high of $95.77. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $89.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.30. The firm has a market cap of $59.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.68.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The utilities provider reported $1.11 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.99 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect 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 issued a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 11th. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is 79.14%.

Insider Activity

In related news, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 4,322 shares of the business’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 sale, the senior vice president directly owned 11,325 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,048,128.75. The trade was a 27.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Kevin C. Sagara sold 28,864 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.21, for a total value of $2,430,637.44. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 15,475 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,303,149.75. The trade was a 65.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 47,619 shares of company stock valued at $4,122,392 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on SRE. Wall Street Zen raised Sempra Energy from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, November 8th. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 22nd. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Sempra Energy from $101.00 to $98.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Evercore ISI set a $105.00 price objective on shares of Sempra Energy and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, 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. 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.