Barclays Downgrades Sempra (NYSE:SRE) to Equal Weight

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) was downgraded by analysts at Barclays from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a report issued on Thursday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They presently have a $72.00 target price on the utilities provider’s stock, down from their previous target price of $95.00. Barclays‘s price objective would indicate a potential upside of 0.70% from the stock’s current price.

SRE has been the topic of several other research reports. UBS Group lowered Sempra from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $95.00 to $78.00 in a research report on Wednesday. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on shares of Sempra from $96.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Mizuho decreased their price target on shares of Sempra from $92.00 to $76.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Sempra from $100.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Guggenheim decreased their target price on shares of Sempra from $95.00 to $87.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $84.54.

Sempra Stock Performance

Shares of Sempra stock opened at $71.50 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.89. Sempra has a 52 week low of $64.89 and a 52 week high of $95.77. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $83.13 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.70.

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 25th. The utilities provider reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.47 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $3.76 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.73 billion. Sempra had a net margin of 22.63% and a return on equity of 8.06%. Sempra’s quarterly revenue was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.13 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Sempra will post 4.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Jeffrey W. Martin sold 49,737 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.94, for a total transaction of $4,125,186.78. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 2 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $165.88. The trade was a 100.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Alexander Lisa Larroque sold 2,755 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.93, for a total transaction of $225,717.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 13,905 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,139,236.65. This trade represents a 16.54 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.24% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Sempra

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Sempra by 5.4% during the 4th quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 2,410 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $211,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its holdings in Sempra by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 8,194 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $719,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Sempra by 5.1% during the fourth quarter. Pinnacle West Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,585 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in shares of Sempra by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. MJP Associates Inc. ADV now owns 6,195 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $543,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Sempra by 5.0% in the fourth quarter. Legacy Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 2,639 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 126 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.