Sempra Energy $SRE Shares Purchased by Amalgamated Bank

Amalgamated Bank increased its position in shares of Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 126,453 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,004 shares during the quarter. Amalgamated Bank’s holdings in Sempra Energy were worth $9,581,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of SRE. Pingora Partners LLC lifted its position in Sempra Energy by 48.3% in the first quarter. Pingora Partners LLC now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. lifted its position in Sempra Energy by 230.8% in the second quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 430 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Bogart Wealth LLC lifted 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 valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 189 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank lifted its position in Sempra Energy by 73.7% in the first quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 580 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 246 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barrett & Company Inc. acquired a new position in Sempra Energy in the second quarter valued at about $51,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.65% of the company’s stock.

Sempra Energy Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:SRE opened at $92.51 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.93, a current ratio of 0.48 and a quick ratio of 0.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.36 billion, a PE ratio of 22.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.66. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $87.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.40. Sempra Energy has a 1 year low of $61.90 and a 1 year high of $95.77.

Sempra Energy (NYSE:SRE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The utilities provider reported $0.89 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $3 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.35 billion. Sempra Energy had a net margin of 20.28% and a return on equity of 8.42%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.89 earnings per share. Analysts predict that Sempra Energy will post 4.76 EPS for the current year.

Sempra Energy Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st were paid a dividend of $0.645 per share. This represents a $2.58 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 1st. Sempra Energy’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.32%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Kevin C. Sagara sold 14,433 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.50, for a total transaction of $1,291,753.50. Following the sale, the director directly owned 1,042 shares in the company, valued at approximately $93,259. This represents a 93.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Caroline Ann Winn sold 5,114 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.01, for a total transaction of $419,399.14. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 39,380 shares in the company, valued at $3,229,553.80. The trade was a 11.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold 48,411 shares of company stock worth $4,141,790 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $80.00 target price (up previously from $70.00) on shares of Sempra Energy in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Barclays set a $101.00 target price on shares of Sempra Energy and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, October 20th. BMO Capital Markets upped their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $95.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 22nd. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of Sempra Energy from $86.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Sempra Energy in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.00.

About Sempra Energy

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.