Spire Inc. Announces Quarterly Dividend of $0.76 (NYSE:SR)

Spire Inc. (NYSE:SR) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, April 25th, Zacks reports. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, June 11th will be given a dividend of 0.755 per share by the utilities provider on Tuesday, July 2nd. This represents a $3.02 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, June 11th.

Spire has raised its dividend payment by an average of 5.0% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 21 years. Spire has a payout ratio of 65.9% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Spire to earn $4.56 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.02 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 66.2%.

Spire Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE SR traded down $0.35 during trading on Friday, reaching $61.40. 361,004 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 320,353. 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 capitalization of $3.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.51. Spire has a 52-week low of $53.77 and a 52-week high of $69.99. The company has a 50-day moving average of $60.01 and a 200-day moving average of $59.98.

Spire (NYSE:SR) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The utilities provider reported $1.47 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.37 by $0.10. The company had revenue of $756.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.55 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Spire will post 4.35 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of Spire from $66.00 to $64.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 22nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Spire in a research note on Tuesday, April 16th. LADENBURG THALM/SH SH began coverage on Spire in a research report on Friday. They set a “neutral” rating and a $57.50 target price for the company. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Spire in a report on Friday, April 12th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $68.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Spire has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $61.72.

Insider Activity

In other Spire news, insider Joseph B. Hampton sold 1,294 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 6,768 shares in the company, valued at $393,423.84. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Treasurer Adam W. Woodard sold 1,229 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $59.58, for a total transaction of $73,223.82. Following the sale, the treasurer now directly owns 1,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $92,944.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Joseph B. Hampton sold 1,294 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 $393,423.84. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 2.86% of the company’s stock.

About Spire

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.