Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Sells 1,666 Shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund decreased its position in shares of Sempra (NYSE:SRE) by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 18,746 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after selling 1,666 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Sempra were worth $1,568,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of SRE. Clearbridge Investments LLC lifted its stake in shares of Sempra by 6.9% during the second quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 13,452,912 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $1,023,228,000 after acquiring an additional 874,133 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its holdings in Sempra by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 2,404,573 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $182,158,000 after purchasing an additional 48,592 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Sempra by 19.7% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,757,553 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $133,679,000 after purchasing an additional 289,731 shares during the period. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its stake in shares of Sempra by 1.6% in the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 1,659,618 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $126,246,000 after purchasing an additional 26,862 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Zimmer Partners LP grew its position in shares of Sempra by 96.9% during the 1st quarter. Zimmer Partners LP now owns 1,636,202 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $117,528,000 after buying an additional 805,084 shares during the period. 89.65% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Sempra Price Performance

NYSE SRE opened at $92.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.47 and a current ratio of 0.52. The stock has a market cap of $58.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.31, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.75. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $84.52 and a 200 day simple moving average of $79.96. Sempra has a 52-week low of $66.40 and a 52-week high of $93.12.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.05 by ($0.16). The company had revenue of $2.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.54 billion. Sempra had a return on equity of 8.06% and a net margin of 22.63%. The firm’s revenue was down 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.08 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Sempra will post 4.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Sempra Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, January 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, December 5th will be issued a $0.62 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, December 5th. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. Sempra’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.63%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on SRE shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Sempra from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 25th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on Sempra from $84.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Bank of America began coverage on Sempra in a report on Thursday, September 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $94.00 price objective for the company. BMO Capital Markets raised their target price on Sempra from $93.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Sempra in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $98.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has assigned a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.00.

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.