Zacks Research Weighs in on Spire Inc.’s Q2 2024 Earnings (NYSE:SR)

Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) – Stock analysts at Zacks Research lifted their Q2 2024 EPS estimates for Spire in a report released on Wednesday, April 17th. Zacks Research analyst R. Department now forecasts that the utilities provider will post earnings per share of $3.84 for the quarter, up from their previous estimate of $3.72. The consensus estimate for Spire’s current full-year earnings is $4.35 per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Spire’s Q2 2025 earnings at $3.84 EPS, FY2025 earnings at $4.55 EPS, Q2 2026 earnings at $3.55 EPS and FY2026 earnings at $4.83 EPS.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.47 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $756.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $688.88 million. Spire had a net margin of 8.11% and a return on equity of 8.27%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.55 earnings per share.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on SR. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Friday, April 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $68.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $65.00 price objective on shares of Spire in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Spire from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $62.25.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SR opened at $60.91 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $59.76 and a 200-day moving average price of $59.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.16, a current ratio of 0.55 and a quick ratio of 0.43. The stock has a market cap of $3.35 billion, a PE ratio of 16.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.51. Spire has a 1 year low of $53.77 and a 1 year high of $70.60.

Spire Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were given a $0.755 dividend. This represents a $3.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. Spire’s payout ratio is currently 81.40%.

Insider Transactions at Spire

In other Spire news, insider Joseph B. Hampton sold 1,294 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.13, for a total transaction of $75,220.22. Following the sale, the insider now owns 6,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $393,423.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Joseph B. Hampton sold 1,294 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.13, for a total value of $75,220.22. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 6,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $393,423.84. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,229 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.58, for a total transaction of $73,223.82. Following the completion of the sale, the treasurer now directly owns 1,560 shares in the company, valued at $92,944.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 2.86% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Spire

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Spire by 2.7% during the first quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 5,345 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $384,000 after buying an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Spire by 15.2% during the first quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 5,593 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $402,000 after purchasing an additional 736 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Spire by 9.0% during the first quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 7,826 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $562,000 after purchasing an additional 645 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Montreal Can lifted its position in shares of Spire by 4.8% during the first quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 26,019 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $1,868,000 after purchasing an additional 1,196 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Great West Life Assurance Co. Can lifted its position in shares of Spire by 13.0% during the first quarter. Great West Life Assurance Co. Can now owns 61,725 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $4,635,000 after purchasing an additional 7,086 shares in the last quarter. 87.36% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Spire Company Profile

Spire Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas.