Sempra (NYSE:SRE) Reaches New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $86.35 and last traded at $86.34, with a volume of 24226 shares. The stock had previously closed at $85.96.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on SRE. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Sempra from $87.00 to $89.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 1st. BMO Capital Markets boosted their target price on Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Bank of America started coverage on shares of Sempra in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Sempra from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Sempra from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has given a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $87.55.

Sempra Stock Up 0.6 %

The firm has a market cap of $54.48 billion, a PE ratio of 19.06, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a quick ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 0.46 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.84. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $82.69 and its 200-day moving average is $77.97.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.92 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $3.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.46 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.31% and a return on equity of 8.58%. The company’s revenue was down 9.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.94 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Sempra will post 4.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, September 26th were paid a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, September 26th. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio is currently 54.99%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Sempra

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Sempra by 4.7% in the third quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 142,001 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $11,876,000 after acquiring an additional 6,380 shares in the last quarter. PFG Investments LLC bought a new position in Sempra during the 3rd quarter valued at $301,000. Arkadios Wealth Advisors bought a new position in Sempra during the 3rd quarter valued at $351,000. Forsta AP Fonden grew its holdings in Sempra by 17.2% during the 3rd quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 119,900 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $10,027,000 after acquiring an additional 17,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in shares of Sempra by 20.0% in the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 51,521 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,289,000 after purchasing an additional 8,587 shares during the last quarter. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other 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.