Spire Inc. $SR Shares Acquired by Resolution Capital Ltd

Resolution Capital Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) by 14.9% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 162,379 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 21,116 shares during the period. Spire comprises 0.3% of Resolution Capital Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Resolution Capital Ltd owned about 0.27% of Spire worth $14,702,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Spire by 10.0% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 212,438 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $16,623,000 after buying an additional 19,373 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Spire during the first quarter valued at approximately $9,636,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its position in shares of Spire by 1,031.5% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 611 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 557 shares in the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its position in shares of Spire by 75.8% in the second quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 4,658 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $340,000 after acquiring an additional 2,009 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Spire by 1.5% in the second quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 585,919 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $42,766,000 after acquiring an additional 8,726 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 87.36% of the company’s stock.

Spire Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE:SR opened at $82.58 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.69. The business has a fifty day moving average of $81.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $86.07. The stock has a market cap of $4.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.51, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.52. Spire Inc. has a 52-week low of $71.24 and a 52-week high of $95.31.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The utilities provider reported $3.76 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.72 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.07 billion. Spire had a return on equity of 9.49% and a net margin of 13.97%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $3.60 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Spire Inc. will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Spire Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Thursday, June 11th were given a dividend of $0.825 per share. This represents a $3.30 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, June 11th. Spire’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SR has been the subject of several recent research reports. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Spire from $106.00 to $103.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 8th. TD Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. They set a “hold” rating and a $101.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company initiated coverage on shares of Spire in a report on Monday, May 11th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $96.00 target price for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Spire from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Mizuho assumed coverage on shares of Spire in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $88.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Spire has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $94.50.

Insider Transactions at Spire

In other news, Director Paul D. Koonce bought 2,000 shares of Spire stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $85.81 per share, with a total value of $171,620.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director directly owned 7,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $600,670. This trade represents a 40.00% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, SVP Ryan L. Hyman sold 3,822 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $80.51, for a total transaction of $307,709.22. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 14,295 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,150,890.45. This trade represents a 21.10% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders have acquired 3,000 shares of company stock worth $251,100 over the last ninety days. 2.26% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Spire Company Profile

Spire Inc (NYSE: SR), formerly known as The Laclede Group, is a regulated natural gas distribution company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Through its three operating divisions—Spire Missouri, Spire Alabama and Spire Mississippi—the company delivers natural gas to more than 1.7 million residential, commercial and industrial customers. Spire’s service territory spans key markets in the central and southern United States, including metropolitan St. Louis, central Alabama and central Mississippi.

Founded in 1857 as the Laclede Gas Light Company, the business has grown through strategic acquisitions, notably Alabama Gas Corporation in 2013 and Mississippi Gas in 2016.